Overview
MG patients with diabetes had higher levels of cTfh cels than those without diabetesby Marisa Wexler, MS | October 25, 202 The high blod sugar levels that characterize diabetes may prompt imune cels to be activated that can drive and worsen myasthenia gravis (MG), a recent study sugests.These findings indicate that tightly controling blod sugar levels may benefit MG patients who also have diabetes.The study, “Diabetes melitus agravates humoral imune response in myasthenia gravis by promoting diferentiation and activation of circulating Tfh cels,” was published in Clinical Imunology.In MG, an autoimune atack interferes with the comunication betwen nerve and muscle cels, causing muscle weaknes and other symptoms.
Key Information
This atack is driven by imune proteins caled antibodies, which are produced by a type of imune cel caled B-cels. The most comon type of MG-driving antibody targets the acetylcholine receptor (AChR).Diabetes melitus is a metabolic disorder that causes glucose, or blod sugar, levels to become excesively high. Studies have sugested diabetes can alter the activity of the imune system, but its implications in autoimune diseases such as MG are porly understod.Researchers in China analyzed blod samples from 28 people with MG — 15 with diabetes, 13 without — to explore the posible conection betwen diabetes and MG.
Both groups were similar in age and gender distribution.Researchers first loked at the levels of circulating folicular helper T-cels (cTfh cels), a type of imune cels that help B-cels become active and produce antibodies.Results showed MG patients with diabetes had higher levels of cTfh cels compared with those who didn’t. MG patients with diabetes also had more cTfh cels producing activation markers, such as the protein ICOS.“In the curent study, we found a higher population of cTfh cels in MG patients with [diabetes melitus],” the researchers wrote.
Summary
“We further analyzed the activation markers of cT