Autoantibodies
and Martina Feichter, medical editor and biologistMartina Feichter studied biology with an elective subject pharmacy in Innsbruck and also immersed herself in the world of medicinal plants. From there it was not far to other medical topics that still captivate her to this day. She trained as a journalist at the Axel Springer Academy in Hamburg and has been working for since 2007 - first as an editor and since 2012 as a freelance writer.
More about the experts All content is checked by medical journalists.
Autoantibodies are antibodies that are directed against the body's own healthy tissue. As a result, an autoimmune disease develops. Read more about the different types of auto-antibodies and what diseases they cause!
What are autoantibodies?
Autoantibodies are antibodies (defense substances) that the immune system produces against the body's own cells or tissue from a pathological dysregulation. Doctors then speak of an autoimmune disease. They usually become noticeable in early adulthood: Under the influence of unknown triggers in the environment and certain genetic make-up, the immune system produces auto-antibodies that attack the body's own tissue.
When are autoantibodies determined?
The doctor has autoantibodies determined if he suspects an autoimmune disease in the patient. However, he never makes the diagnosis on the basis of the laboratory value alone.
Examples of autoimmune diseases and their corresponding antibodies:
|
Autoimmune disease |
Autoantibodies |
|
Type 1 diabetes
|
ICA (islet cell antibodies) |
|
GADA (glutamate decarboxylase antibody) | |
|
IA2-AK (tyrosine phosphatase antibody) | |
|
Insulin antibodies | |
|
Graves disease |
TPO-AK (thyroid peroxidase antibody) |
|
MAK (antibodies against microsomal thyroid antigen) | |
|
Hashimoto's thyroiditis |
TgAK (thyroglobulin antibody) |
|
TPO-AK (thyroid peroxidase antibody) | |
|
Myasthenia gravis |
AchR-AK (acetylcholine receptor antibodies) |
|
Skeletal muscle antibodies) | |
|
Rheumatoid arthritis |
RF (rheumatoid factor) |
|
Rheumatic diseases (such as lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, panarteritis nodosa, scleroderma) |
ANA (antinuclear antibodies)
|
|
Some inflammation of the blood vessels (vasculitis) |
ANCA (Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibodies) |
|
Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (formerly: Wegener's disease) |
cANCA (cytoplasmic type ANCA) |
|
Inflammation of small vessels (Churg-Strauss syndrome, microscopic polyangiitis) |
pANCA (perinuclear type ANCA) |
|
Primary sclerosing biliary tract inflammation, chronic inflammatory bowel disease, primary biliary cirrhosis |
Atypical pANCA |
|
Chronic active hepatitis |
SMA (smooth muscle antibodies) |
|
ANA (Antunuclear Antibodies) | |
|
Autoimmune hepatitis |
LKM (liver-kidney-microsome-antibody) |
How are autoantibodies determined?
The doctor will need a normal blood sample to determine auto-antibodies.
When is the autoantibody level too high?
Autoantibodies play an important role in the diagnosis of autoimmune diseases. Sometimes they can be found in the blood even before the onset of the disease. However, the detection of autoantibodies does not prove that the patient has the disease. The doctor must also take into account the patient's complaints and any other test results.
Slightly elevated autoantibody levels can also occur in healthy people, for example slightly elevated ANA or rheumatoid factors in smokers, women who take the "pill" or in the elderly.
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