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Administration of the probiotic bifidobacteria may ease myasthenia gravis (MG) symptoms by regulating the behavior of immune cells and altering the makeup of gut bacteria, a study in rats suggests. The study, “Therapeutic Effect of Bifidobacterium Administration on Experimental Autoimmune Myasthenia Gravis in Lewis Rats,”…

Scientists have created — in a lab dish — a three-dimensional model system made of human neurons and muscle cells that can be used to study neuromuscular disorders, including myasthenia gravis. The new model is described in the study, “Self-Organizing 3D Human Trunk Neuromuscular Organoids,” published in…

Variations in the gene DRB1 are associated with different risks of developing late-onset myasthenia gravis (LOMG), a recent meta-analysis suggests. This finding may lead to the identification of promising biomarkers for LOMG risk, the researchers said. The analysis, titled “The associations of HLA-DRB1 gene polymorphisms…

A recent meta-analysis has identified factors that put patients with myasthenia gravis at risk for complications following surgery to remove their thymus. These factors include having generalized myasthenia gravis (as opposed to the ocular form), symptoms in the head and neck, and tumors on the thymus. The analysis…

A type of immune cells called natural killer (NK) cells may be able to reduce symptoms of myasthenia gravis (MG) by regulating other components of the immune system, a study in rats showed. Targeting these cells might be a valid therapeutic pathway for treatment of MG and other…

Treatments conventionally used for myasthenia gravis (MG) can produce side effects that negatively impact the daily lives of patients and may deter them from taking their medications properly, according to a study which also highlights the need for more effective and tolerable treatment options. The report, titled “…

Treatments promoting the formation of acetylcholine receptor (AChR) clusters could represent a new therapeutic approach for people with MuSK-autoantibody positive myasthenia gravis (MuSK-MG), a preclinical study suggests. While the data still need to be confirmed in further studies, researchers highlighted the therapeutic potential of targeting MG-associated cell processes, instead of…

The majority of myasthenia gravis (MG) acute exacerbations are associated with infections or with certain medications, a recent study suggests. These findings suggest that patients on certain medications, such as beta blockers and antibiotics, should be closely monitored and highlight the importance of vaccination. The study, titled, “…

In people with ocular myasthenia gravis, the presence of anti-AChR or anti-MuSK antibodies likely increases their risk of disease generalization to the rest of the body, according to a recent study. Researchers also call attention to the disease when it’s associated with certain cancer therapies, due to greater…

Most patients with late-onset myasthenia gravis (LOMG) — those whose disease appears at age 50 or later and is not related to tumors in the thymus gland — are men, have mild-to-moderate disease, and respond well to treatment with oral prednisone combined with azathioprine, a study in…