Autoantibodies against the amino terminal of α-enolase are a useful diagnostic marker of Hashimoto's encephalopathy

• DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2005.02.004
• Publication Date: 2005-03-23T12:40:21Z
• Authors: A. Fujii; M. Yoneda; T. Ito; O. Yamamura; S. Satomi; H. Higa; A. Kimura; M. Suzuki; M. Yamashita; T. Yuasa; H. Suzuki; M. Kuriyama
• Keywords: Adult; Tumor Suppressor Proteins; Blotting, Western; Thyroiditis, Autoimmune; Brain; Middle Aged; Recombinant Proteins; 3. Good health; DNA-Binding Proteins; Epitopes; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Echocardiography; Phosphopyruvate Hydratase; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; Biomarkers, Tumor; Humans; Female; Biomarkers; Cells, Cultured; Aged; Autoantibodies

We investigated autoantibodies and their epitope(s) in Hashimoto's encephalopathy associated with Hashimoto's thyroiditis. In a proteomic analysis, they proved to recognize alpha-enolase. We further searched the epitope region in alpha-enolase using different regions of recombinant proteins expressed in cultured human cells. The amino terminal region was recognized by autobodies from a much higher proportion of patients with Hashimoto's encephalopathy (83.3%; 5/6) than from patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis (11.8%; 2/17), and not at all by sera from controls (25 healthy individuals and 25 controls with other neurological disorders) (0%; 0/50). Neither the carboxyl terminal nor the mid-region of alpha-enolase showed specificity for Hashimoto's encephalopathy. Autoantibodies against the amino terminal of alpha-enolase are a useful diagnostic marker for Hashimoto's encephalopathy.