Progress in rituximab for anti⁃MuSK antibody-related myasthenia gravis

Ting LI, Li YANG

Abstract


Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoantibody mediated autoimmune disease of the neuromuscular junction (NMJ), and anti⁃muscle⁃specific receptor tyrosine kinase (MuSK) antibody⁃related MG (MuSK⁃MG) covers 5%-8% of all MG patients. MuSK⁃MG is a life threatening condition, characterized with early bulbar, neck, and respiratory muscle weakness. MuSK-MG patients have poor response to standard therapies, known as drug⁃resistant patients. Rituximab (RTX) is a monoclonal antibody that targets the CD20 antigen on B cells. At present, most studies have described clinical improvement and immunosuppressant dose reduction following RTX treatment of refractory MG patients, especially for MuSK⁃MG patients.

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1672⁃6731.2020.01.008


Keywords


Myasthenia gravis; Muscle ⁃ specific receptor tyrosine kinase (not in MeSH); Rituximab; Review

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