Thymus changes in anti-MuSK-positive and -negative myasthenia gravis

Abstract

Morphologic findings of thymuses from 32 anti-acetylcholine receptor (AChR)-negative myasthenia gravis patients, 12 with and 20 without antibodies against the muscle-specific kinase (MuSK), were compared with those from 30 AChR-positive subjects. In contrast with the high frequency of thymic hyperplastic changes in AChR-positive patients, in MuSK-positive subjects histologic alterations were minimal, arguing against an intrathymic disease pathogenesis. Since hyperplastic changes were seen in 35% of MuSK-negative patients, the thymus could be involved in some of these cases.