scholarly journals Immunization with thyroglobulin induces Graves'-like disease in mice

2009 ◽  
Vol 202 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Toyoshi Endo ◽  
Tetsuro Kobayashi

We immunized AKR/N mice with bovine thyroglobulin (Tg) once every 2 weeks and monitored their time-dependent changes in 125I uptake activity in the thyroid glands. After 3 months, anti-Tg antibody was positive in all sera from the immunized mice. Serum free tri-iodothyronine (T3) and free thyroxine (T4) levels in the immunized mice (n=6) were significantly higher than those in the saline injected (control) mice (n=6). Neck counts as well as scintigraphy of the thyroid glands revealed that iodide uptake activity of the immunized mice was not suppressed, but was instead higher than that of the control mice. Two of the six immunized mice showed extremely high iodide uptake activity. The thyroid glands of these two mice were diffusely enlarged and the height of the epithelial cells was also increased. In addition, two mice with high iodide uptake activity produced a high titer of thyroid-stimulating antibody. Additional experiments showed that 4 out of 11 AKR/N mice and 3 out of 10 C57BL6 mice immunized with Tg had high serum free T3/free T4 levels, high 125I uptake activity of the thyroid, and positive thyroid-stimulating antibody activity. Diffuse goiter, thyrotoxicosis, high iodide uptake activity, and positive thyroid-stimulating antibody are the characteristics of Graves' disease. Thus, these mice exhibit the symptoms of Graves' disease. These results suggest that immunization with Tg induces Graves'-like disease in mice and that our methods will provide a new animal model of Graves' disease.

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Estefania Rodriguez Ballestas ◽  
Sehar Ejaz

Abstract Introduction: Neonatal Graves’ disease (NGD) occurs in approximately 1-5% of infants born to women with Graves’ disease. It is caused by trans-placental crossing of thyroid stimulating immunoglobulin (TSI) antibodies during third trimester. Hyperthyroidism during pregnancy can lead to craniosynostosis, goiter, premature bone maturation, developmental delay or even heart failure in the neonate. Neonatal Hyperthyroidism is usually transient and resolves in few weeks. Treatment consists of beta blockers and Methimazole. Studies in adults recommend discontinuing of Methimazole if patients develop neutropenia. However due to lack of alternatives, we present a case of continued use of Methimazole with neutropenia in newborn twins. Case Report: 33 weeks gestational age mono-chorionic/di-amniotic twins born to a 34-year-old woman with poorly controlled hyperthyroidism. Mother diagnosed with Graves’ disease during 2nd trimester with poor control throughout pregnancy. At the time of delivery, maternal TSH was <0.005uIU/mL(0.358-3.74uIU/mL) and FT4 2.18ng/dL(0.76-1.46ng/dL). Antenatal ultrasound at 32 weeks showed homogeneous enlargement of fetal thyroid glands with increased vascularity in both twins. Babies found to have diffuse goiter and exophthalmos at birth. Thyroid tests remained normal for first 3 days of life. By day 3, babies labs showed TSH <0.005uIU/mL, FT4 -8 ug/dL and TSI >700%. Baseline CBC showed ANC of 4.95K/mm3. Babies were started on Methimazole 0.5mg/kg/day and Propranolol 2mg/kg/day. TFTs fluctuated throughout their stay in NICU and they developed neutropenia with ANC 1.23K/mm3 on day 20 of life. Methimazole was initially discontinued then restarted at 0.25 mg/kg/day 3 days later. There is no recommended protocol for restarting Methimazole. Further follow up showed persistent neutropenia despite multiple dose adjustments in Methimazole, including dosing every other day. ANC was maintained around 800-1100K/mm3. At age 2 months, Methimazole was discontinued completely after TSI antibodies decreased to 400%. ANC remained low until 6 months of life, even after discontinuing Methimazole. Both babies ultimately developed central hypothyroidism and were started on l-thyroxine. Discussion: NGD can range anywhere from transient hyperthyroidism to persistent central hypothyroidism. Early diagnosis and treatment is crucial to prevent significant morbidity and mortality. Methimazole is the only approved treatment at this age, and management of Methimazole-induced neutropenia has not been established. Adult studies recommend discontinuing Methimazole in context of neutropenia; we took an approach of decreasing dose gradually. Further studies are needed to establish step-wise approach in managing Methimazole-induced neutropenia.


1990 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Makoto I Iitaka ◽  
Nobuhiko Fukasawa ◽  
Yoshihito Hara ◽  
Morifumi Yanagisawa ◽  
Kazumasa Hase ◽  
...  

Abstract. The sera from two patients with Graves' disease gave abnormally high serum free T4 values as compared with the total T4 and other hormone values, suggesting the presence of autoantibodies to labelled T4 analogue used in the Amersham free T4 assay kit. The autoantibodies appeared to develop after the initiation of methimazole therapy and disappeared again after the cessation of methimazole. This binding activity to labelled T4 analogue was demonstrated to be in the immunoglobulin G with a k light chain isotype in both sera, and was displaced by unlabelled T4 in a dose-dependent manner. The binding of immunoglobulin G purified from these sera to labelled T4 or T4 analogue was found to be almost identical to that of the corresponding serum binding. Since the specific radioactivity of labelled T4 analogue used in the Amersham free T4 assay kit is about 10 times higher than that of the labelled T4 in the Amersham total T4 assay kit, serum free T4 determinations are much more vulnerable to thyroid hormone autoantibodies. Thus, in the presence of autoantibodies, a large discrepancy develops between free T4 and total T4 values.


Endocrinology ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 145 (11) ◽  
pp. 4927-4933 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chun-Rong Chen ◽  
H. Aliesky ◽  
P. N. Pichurin ◽  
Y. Nagayama ◽  
S. M. McLachlan ◽  
...  

Abstract We investigated why TSH receptor (TSHR) adenovirus immunization induces hyperthyroidism more commonly in BALB/c than in C57BL/6 mice. Recent modifications of the adenovirus model suggested that using adenovirus expressing the TSHR A subunit (A-subunit-Ad), rather than the full-length TSHR, and injecting fewer viral particles would increase the frequency of hyperthyroidism in C57BL/6 mice. This hypothesis was not fulfilled; 65% of BALB/c but only 5% of C57BL/6 mice developed hyperthyroidism. TSH binding inhibitory antibody titers were similar in each strain. Functional TSHR antibody measurements provided a better indication for this strain difference. Whereas thyroid-stimulating antibody activity was higher in C57BL/6 than BALB/c mice, TSH blocking antibody activity was more potent in hyperthyroid-resistant C57BL/6 mice. F1 hybrids (BALB/c × C57BL/6) responded to A-subunit-Ad immunization with hyperthyroidism and TSHR antibody profiles similar to those of the hyperthyroid-susceptible parental BALB/c strain. In contrast, ELISA of TSHR antibodies revealed that the IgG subclass distribution in the F1 mice resembled the disease-resistant C57BL/6 parental strain. Because the IgG subclass distribution is dependent on the T helper 1/T helper 2 cytokine balance, this paradigm can likely be excluded as an explanation for susceptibility to hyperthyroidism. In summary, our data for BALB/c, C57BL/6, and F1 strains suggest that BALB/c mice carry a dominant gene(s) for susceptibility to induction of a thyroid-stimulating antibody/TSH blocking antibody balance that results in hyperthyroidism. Study of this genetic influence will provide useful information on potential candidate genes in human Graves’ disease.


2000 ◽  
Vol 39 (05) ◽  
pp. 133-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Dembowski ◽  
H.-J. Schroth ◽  
K. Klinger ◽  
Th. Rink

Summary Aim of this study is to evaluate new and controversially discussed indications for determining the thyroglobulin (Tg) level in different thyroid diseases to support routine diagnostics. Methods: The following groups were included: 250 healthy subjects without goiter, 50 persons with diffuse goiter, 161 patients with multinodular goiter devoid of functional disorder (108 of them underwent surgery, in 17 cases carcinomas were detected), 60 hyperthyroid patients with autonomously functioning nodular goiter, 150 patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and 30 hyperthyroid patients with Graves’ disease. Results: The upper limit of the normal range of the Tg level was calculated as 30 ng Tg/ml. The evaluation of the collective with diffuse goiter showed that the figure of the Tg level can be expected in a similar magnitude as the thyroid volume in milliliters. Nodular tissue led to far higher Tg values then presumed when considering the respective thyroid volume, with a rather high variance. A formula for a rough prediction of the Tg levels in nodular goiters is described. In ten out of 17 cases with thyroid carcinoma, the Tg was lower than estimated with thyroid and nodular volumes, but two patients showed a Tg exceeding 1000 ng/ml. The collective with functional autonomy had a significantly higher average Tg level than a matched euthyroid group being under suppressive levothyroxine substitution. However, due to the high variance of the Tg values, the autonomy could not consistently be predicted with the Tg level in individual cases. The patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis showed slightly decreased Tg levels. In Graves’ disease, a significantly higher average Tg level was observed compared with a matched group with diffuse goiter, but 47% of all Tg values were still in the normal range (< 30 ng/ml). Conclusion: Elevated Tg levels indicate a high probability of thyroid diseases, such as malignancy, autonomy or Graves’ disease. However, as low Tg concentrations cannot exclude the respective disorder, a routine Tg determination seems not to be justified in benign thyroid diseases.


2005 ◽  
Vol 184 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea C F Ferreira ◽  
Lívia P Lima ◽  
Renata L Araújo ◽  
Glaucia Müller ◽  
Renata P Rocha ◽  
...  

Transport of iodide into thyrocytes, a fundamental step in thyroid hormone biosynthesis, depends on the presence of the sodium–iodide symporter (NIS). The importance of the NIS for diagnosis and treatment of diseases has raised several questions about its physiological control. The goal of this study was to evaluate the influence of thyroid iodine content on NIS regulation by thyrotrophin (TSH) in vivo. We showed that 15-min thyroid radioiodine uptake can be a reliable measurement of NIS activity in vivo. The effect of TSH on the NIS was evaluated in rats treated with 1-methyl-2-mercaptoimidazole (MMI; hypothyroid with high serum TSH concentrations) for 21 days, and after 1 (R1d), 2 (R2d), or 5 (R5d) days of withdrawal of MMI. NIS activity was significantly greater in both MMI and R1d rats. In R2d and R5d groups, thyroid iodide uptake returned to normal values, despite continuing high serum TSH, possibly as a result of the re-establishment of iodine organification after withdrawal of MMI. Excess iodine (0.05% NaI for 6 days) promoted a significant reduction in thyroid radioiodide uptake, an effect that was blocked by concomitant administration of MMI, confirming previous findings that iodine organification is essential for the iodide transport blockade seen during iodine overload. Therefore, our data show that modulation of the thyroid NIS by TSH depends primarily on thyroid iodine content and, further, that the regulation of NIS activity is rapid.


2005 ◽  
Vol 51 (6) ◽  
pp. 1071-1072 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kunihiro Iwahara ◽  
Chizuko Tanabe ◽  
Kozo Nishiyama ◽  
Hiroyuki Ohashi ◽  
Masato Maekawa

2021 ◽  
Vol 184 (3) ◽  
pp. 431-440
Author(s):  
Hassina Benlarbi ◽  
Dominique Simon ◽  
Jonathan Rosenblatt ◽  
Cecile Dumaine ◽  
Nicolas de Roux ◽  
...  

Objective Neonatal hyperthyroidism may be caused by a permanent non-autoimmune genetic disorder or, more frequently, by maternally transmitted high serum TRAb levels. Variable thyroid dysfunction may be observed in this second context. We aimed to evaluate the prevalence of neonatal non-autoimmune hyperthyroidism and of the different types of thyroid function in neonates with a high risk of hyperthyroidism due to maternal Graves’ disease (GD). Design and methods This observational cohort study included all neonates identified in the database of a single academic pediatric care center, over a period of 13 years, as having non-autoimmune hyperthyroidism or an autoimmune disorder with high TRAb levels (above 6 IU/L) transmitted by their mothers. Patients were classified as having neonatal hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, or euthyroidism with a permanent or transient disorder. Results Two of the 34 consecutive neonates selected (6%) had permanent non-autoimmune hyperthyroidism due to germline (n = 1) or somatic (n = 1) mutations of the TSH receptor gene. The patients with high serum TRAb levels at birth had transient hyperthyroidism (n = 23), hypothyroidism (primary n = 2, central n = 3) or persistent euthyroidism (n = 4). Conclusion These original findings highlight the need for careful and appropriate monitoring of thyroid function in the long term, not only for the rare patients with non-autoimmune neonatal hyperthyroidism, but also for repeat monitoring during the first month of life in neonates with maternally transmitted high TRAb levels, to ensure the early identification of thyrotoxicosis in more than two thirds of cases and to detect primary or central hypothyroidism, thereby potentially decreasing associated morbidity.


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