Abstract
We report four cases found to have anti-bovine thyrotropin (bTSH) antibodies, two with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and the other two, each with subacute thyroiditis and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The unusually high negative titers of anti-TSH receptor antibodies (Case no. 1, −43.1%; Case no. 2, −34.9%; Case no. 3, −55.2%; Case no. 4, −59.9%) led to the incidental finding of the presence of anti-bovine (bTSH) antibodies in each patient. Case no. 1 was diagnosed to have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and was treated with L-thyroxine (L-T4). With the treatment, serum free T4 (FT4)normalized with a decline in the serum TSH concentration. The other patient diagnosed to have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (Case no. 2) remained euthyroid even without supplemental thyroid hormone therapy and the serum concentrations of FT4 and TSH stayed within the normal range. The third is a case of subacute thyroiditis (Case no. 3) with a typical clinical course of the disease. She had the anti-bTSH antibodies on her first outpatient visit. Serial examination of her sera disclosed the antibody titers to be on the same range over the 28 months after the onset of the symptoms. The fourth is a patient with SLE who had been treated with steroid (alternative day therapy of 40 mg/day prednisolone). Titers of the anti-bTSH antibodies spontaneously declined to the negative level 5 months later. None of the four cases had antibodies against human TSH α-subunit of bovine LH and α-subunit of bovine FSH. Except for the SLE patient whose anti-bTSH antibodies disappeared spontaneously, the rest of the three patients persistently showed the antibodies suggesting a continuous anti-genic stimulation by bTSH or bTSH-like molecule.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Chaussain J.L., Binet E., Job J-C. Antibodies to human thyrotrophin in the serum of certain hypopituitary dwarfs. Rev. Europ. Étudo. Clin. et Biol. 17: 95, 1972.
Lazarus J.H., John R., Ginsberg J., Hughes I.A., Shewring G., Smith B.R., Woodhead J.S., Hall R. Transient neonatal hyperthyrotropinaemia: a serum abnormality due to transplacentally acquired antibody to thyroid stimulating hormone. Br. Med. J. 186: 592, 1983.
Akamizu T., Ishii H., Mori T., Ishihara T., Ikekubo K., Imura H. Abnormal thyrotropin binding immunoglobulin in two patients with Graves’ disease. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 59: 240, 1984.
Noh J., Hamada N., Saito H., Oyanagi H., Ishikawa N., Momotani N., Ito K., Morii H. Evidence against the importance in the disease process of antibodies to bovine thyroid stimulating hormone found in some patients with Graves’ disease. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 68: 107, 1989.
Ochi Y., Nagamune T., Nakajima Y., Ishihara M., Kajita Y., Hachiya T., Ogura H. Anti-TSH antibodies in Graves’ disease and their failure to interact with TSH receptor antibodies. Acta Endocrinol. (Copenh.) 120: 773, 1989.
Akamizu T., Mori T., Ishii H., Yokota T., Nakamura H., Imura H. Clinical significance of elevated labeled TSH binding (LTB) activity in sera of patients with Graves’ disease and other thyroid disorders. J. Endocrinol. Invest. 10: 459, 1987.
Biro J. Specific binding of thyroid-stimulating hormone by human serum globulins. J. Endocrinol. 88: 339, 1981.
Burman K.D., Baker J.R. Jr. Immune mechanisms in Graves’ disease. Endocrine. Rev. 6: 183, 1985.
Smith B.R., McLachlan S.M., Furmaniak J. Autoantibodies to the thyrotropin receptor. Endocrine. Rev. 9: 106, 1988.
Smith B.R., Rickard C.R., Jones E.D., Kajita Y., Buckland P.R., Creagh F.M., Howells R.D., Hashim F., Parkes A.B., Petersen V.B. The thyrotropin receptor and its role in Graves’ disease. J. Endocrinol. Invest. 8: 175, 1985.
Iitaka M., Tanikawa T., Sakatsume Y., Yanagisawa M., Hara Y., Ishii J. Interference with thyrotropin receptor antibody determination by a spuriously occurring anti-bovine TSH antibody. Acta Endocrinol. (Copenh.) 112: 197, 1986.
Islam M.N., Pepper B.M., Briones-Urbina R., Farid N.R. Biological activity of anti-thyrotropin anti-idiotypic antibody. Europ. J. Immunol. 13: 57, 1983.
Eto S., Fujihira T., Ohnami S., Suzuki H. Autoantibody to bovine TSH in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Lancet 1: 520, 1984.
Kajita Y., Nakajima Y., Ishida M., Fujita Y., Nagamune T., Hachiya T., Nakagawa M., Inui T., Ochi Y. Binding of bovine and porcine pituitary glycoprotein hormone α-subunit to TSH antibody in serum of patients with Graves’ disease. Autoimmunity 6: 71, 1990.
Akamizu T., Mori T., Kasagi K., Kosugi S., Miyamoto M., Nishino K., Sugawa H., Yokota T., Nakamura H., Konishi J., Imura H. Anti-TSH antibody with high specificity to human TSH in sera from a patient with Graves’ disease: its isolation from, and interaction with, TSH receptor antibodies. Clin. Endocrinol. (Oxf.) 26: 311, 1987.
Raines K.B., Baker J.R. Jr., Lukes Y.G., Wartofsky L., Burman K.D. Antithyrotropin antibodies in the sera of Graves’ disease patients. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 61: 217, 1985.
Kajita Y., Nakajima Y., Ishida M., Ochi Y., Miyazaki T., Hachiya T., Ijichi H. Characterization of autoantibodies to bovine TSH in the serum of two patients with Graves’ disease. Acta Endocrinol. (Copenh.) 104: 423, 1983.
Akamizu T., Mori T., Imura H., Noh J., Hamada N., Ito K., Koizumi Y., Yamada T., Fujihira T., Eto S., Hara Y., Ishii J., Kajita Y., Shinozawa T., Ichikawa Y., Kaise K., Sakurada T. Clinical significance of anti-TSH antibody in sera from patients with Graves’ disease and other thyroid disorders. J. Endocrinol. Invest. 12: 483, 1989.
Arikawa K. The significance of anti-TSH receptor antibodies in thyroid diseases. Folia. Endocrinol. Jpn. 59: 131, 1983.
Endo K., Kasagi K., Konishi J., Ikekubo K., Okuno T., Takeda Y., Mori T., Torizuka K. Detection and properties of TSH-binding inhibitor immunoglobulins in patients with Graves’ disease and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 46: 734, 1978.
Sugenoya A., Kidd A., Row V.V., Volpè R. A comparison of the radioligand technique and the cellular stimulation technique for the demonstration of thyroid stimulating immunoglobulins. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 48: 398, 1979.
Stakosch C.R., Joyner D., Wall J.R. Thyroid stimulating antibodies in patients with suba-cute thyroiditis. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 46: 345, 1978.
Tao T-W., Kriss J.P. Membrane-binding antibodies in patients with Graves’ disease and other autoimmune diseases. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 55: 935, 1982.
Baker J.R., Lukes Y.G., Smallridge R.C., Berger M., Burman K.D. Partial characterization and clinical correlation of circulating human immunoglobulins directed against thyrotrophin binding sites in Guinea pig fat cell membranes. J. Clin. Invest. 72: 1487, 1983.
Beall G.N., Kruger S.R. Binding of 125I-human TSH by gamma globulins of sera containing thyroid hormone stimulating immunoglobulin (TSI). Life Sci. 32: 77, 1983.
Weiss M., Ingbar S.H., Winblad S., Kasper D.L. Demonstration of saturable binding site for thyrotropin in Yersinia enterocolitica. Science 219: 1331, 1983.
Takuno H., Sakata S., Miura K. Antibodies to Yersinia enterocolitica serotype 3 in autoimmune thyroid diseases. Endocrinol. Jpn. 37: 489, 1990.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sakata, S., Takuno, H., Nagai, K. et al. Anti-bovine thyrotropin autoantibodies in patients with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, subacute thyroiditis, and systemic lupus erythematosus. J Endocrinol Invest 14, 123–130 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03350283
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03350283