Antigenic Structure of the Human Muscle Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Main Immunogenic Region

作者：Luo Jie; Lindstrom Jon^*

来源：Journal of Molecular Neuroscience, 2010, 40(1-2): 217-220.

DOI：10.1007/s12031-009-9271-y

• Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor
• Myasthenia gravis
• Experimental autoimmune myasthenia gravis
• Main immunogenic region
• Acetylcholine binding protein
• Monoclonal antibodies

The main immunogenic region on the alpha 1 subunits of muscle nicotinic acetylcholine receptors provokes half or more of the autoantibodies in myasthenia gravis and its animal model. Many of these autoantibodies depend on the native conformation of the receptor for their ability to bind with high affinity. We mapped this region and explained the conformation dependence of its epitopes by making chimeras in which sequences of human muscle alpha 1 subunits were replaced in human neuronal alpha 7 subunits or Aplysia acetylcholine binding protein. These chimeras also revealed that the main immunogenic region can play a major role in promoting conformational maturation and, consequently, assembly of receptor subunits.

• 出版日期2010-1