Neurology
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Correspondence:
Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when Correspondence are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Shibuya, N.
Right arrow Articles by Nakazawa, Y.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Shibuya, N.
Right arrow Articles by Nakazawa, Y.
NEUROLOGY 1978;28:804
© 1978 American Academy of Neurology

Serum factor blocks neuromuscular transmission in myasthenia gravis

Electrophysiologic study with intracellular microelectrodes

Noritoshi Shibuya, M.D., Kazutake Mori, M.D. and Yoshio Nakazawa, M.D.

Department of Neurology, National Kawatana Hospital, Kawatanamachi, Higashisonogigun, Nagasaki, Japan.

We studied the effects of normal and myasthenic sera on the miniature endplate potential (MEPP) and resting membrane potential (RP) of rat muscle in vitro by conventional intracellular microelectrode techniques. Normal sera had little or no effect on either the amplitude or frequency of MEPP or RP. On the other hand, MEPP amplitude was reduced in each of nine muscles during exposure to myasthenic sera; five of these muscles showed a significant difference, by student's t-test, from the values in a control solution. The half decay time of diminished MEPP remained unchanged. MEPP frequency and RP were not affected by myasthenic sera. The reduced amplitude of the MEPP was almost completely restored when the muscle was washed with a control solution for more than 30 minutes. These observations indicate that myasthenic sera contain factors that bind reversibly with the acetylcholine receptor and reduce postsynaptic responses to acetylcholine.

Dr. Shibuya's address is Department of Neurology, National Kawatana Hospital, 2005-1 Shimogumigo, Kawatanamachi, Higashisonogigun, Nagasaki, Japan 859-36.

This study was supported in part by a Research Grant from the Intractable Disease Division, Public Health Bureau, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Japan.

Accepted for publication August 5, 1977.






HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1978 by AAN Enterprises, Inc.