Anti-

glutamate receptor Glutamate receptors are synaptic and non synaptic receptors located primarily on the membranes of neuronal and glial cells. Glutamate (the conjugate base of glutamic acid) is abundant in the human body, but particularly in the nervous system a ...

antibodies are

autoantibodies An autoantibody is an antibody (a type of protein) produced by the immune system that is directed against one or more of the individual's own proteins. Many autoimmune diseases (notably lupus erythematosus) are associated with such antibodies. Pr ...

detected in serum and/or

cerebrospinal fluid Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is a clear, colorless body fluid found within the tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord of all vertebrates. CSF is produced by specialised ependymal cells in the choroid plexus of the ventricles of the bra ...

samples of a variety of disorders such as

encephalitis Encephalitis is inflammation of the brain. The severity can be variable with symptoms including reduction or alteration in consciousness, headache, fever, confusion, a stiff neck, and vomiting. Complications may include seizures, hallucinations, ...

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical ...

and

ataxia Ataxia is a neurological sign consisting of lack of voluntary coordination of muscle movements that can include gait abnormality, speech changes, and abnormalities in eye movements. Ataxia is a clinical manifestation indicating dysfunction of ...

. Clinical and experimental studies starting around the year 2000 suggest that these antibodies are not simply epiphenomena and are involved in

autoimmune disease An autoimmune disease is a condition arising from an abnormal immune response to a functioning body part. At least 80 types of autoimmune diseases have been identified, with some evidence suggesting that there may be more than 100 types. Nearly a ...

pathogenesis.

Anti-AMPAr

The first anti-glutamate receptor antibody was shown by McNamara JO and colleagues to be directed against the GluR3 subunit of the alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionic acid (AMPA) receptor.Rogers SW, Andrews PI, Gahring LC, Whisenand T, Cauley K, Crain B, Hughes TE, Heinemann SF, McNamara JO. Autoantibodies to glutamate receptor GluR3 in Rasmussen's encephalitis. Science. 1994 Jul 29;265(5172):648-51. Since then anti-GluR3 antibodies have been demonstrated in temporal lobe epilepsy,

epilepsia partialis continua Epilepsia partialis continua is a rare type of brain disorder in which a patient experiences recurrent motor epileptic seizures that are focal (hands and face), and recur every few seconds or minutes for extended periods (days to years). It is som ...

and focal epilepsy.Mantegazza R, Bernasconi P, Baggi F, Spreafico R, Ragona F, Antozzi C, Bernardi G, Granata T. Antibodies against GluR3 peptides are not specific for Rasmussen's encephalitis but are also present in epilepsy patients with severe, early onset disease and intractable seizures. J Neuroimmunol. 2002 Oct;131(1-2):179-85.

Anti-NMDAr

The second large group of anti-glutamate receptor antibodies is associated with different subunits of

N-methyl-D-aspartate ''N''-methyl--aspartic acid or ''N''-methyl--aspartate (NMDA) is an amino acid derivative that acts as a specific agonist at the NMDA receptor mimicking the action of glutamate, the neurotransmitter which normally acts at that receptor. Unl ...

(NMDA) receptor. Patients with

limbic encephalitis Limbic encephalitis is a form of encephalitis, a disease characterized by inflammation of the brain. Limbic encephalitis is caused by autoimmunity: an abnormal state where the body produces antibodies against itself. Some cases are associated with ...

, encephalitis,

systemic lupus erythematosus Lupus, technically known as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Comm ...

, ataxia and epilepsia partialis continua may present with serum and cerebrospinal fluid antibodies to the delta2 or NR2 subunits of the NMDA receptor.Shiihara T, Kato M, Konno A, Takahashi Y, Hayasaka K. Acute cerebellar ataxia and consecutive cerebellitis produced by glutamate receptor delta2 autoantibody. Brain Dev. 2007 May;29(4):254-6.Hanly JG, Robichaud J, Fisk JD. Anti-NR2 glutamate receptor antibodies and cognitive function in systemic lupus erythematosus. J Rheumatol. 2006 Aug;33(8):1553-8.Mochizuki Y, Mizutani T, Isozaki E, Ohtake T, Takahashi Y. Acute limbic encephalitis: a new entity? Neurosci Lett. 2006 Feb 6;394(1):5-8. Antibodies against the NR1, NR2A and NR2B subunits of the NMDA receptor were described by

Josep Dalmau Josep is a Catalan masculine given name equivalent to Joseph (Spanish ''José''). People named Josep include: * Josep Bargalló (born 1958), Catalan philologist and former politician * Josep Bartolí (1910-1995), Catalan painter, cartoonist and ...

Erdem Tüzün Erdem () is a masculine name with Uyghur language origin. In 11th century- Qutadghubilik it means "virtue, merit, kind, knowledge". Erdem may also refer to: People with the given name * Erdem Başçı, Turkish economist * Erdem Helvacıoğlu, Tu ...

and colleagues in women presenting with psychiatric symptoms,

amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or disease,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be caused temporarily by the use ...

seizure An epileptic seizure, informally known as a seizure, is a period of symptoms due to abnormally excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain. Outward effects vary from uncontrolled shaking movements involving much of the body with los ...

dyskinesia Dyskinesia refers to a category of movement disorders that are characterized by involuntary muscle movements, including movements similar to tics or chorea and diminished voluntary movements. Dyskinesia can be anything from a slight tremor of t ...

s, autonomic dysfunction and loss of consciousness. So far, these antibodies appear to be associated with an accompanying ovarian or mediastinal

teratoma A teratoma is a tumor made up of several different types of tissue, such as hair, muscle, teeth, or bone. Teratomata typically form in the ovary, testicle, or coccyx. Symptoms Symptoms may be minimal if the tumor is small. A testicular terato ...

expressing NMDA receptors.Dalmau J, Tuzun E, Wu HY, Masjuan J, Rossi JE, Voloschin A, Baehring JM, Shimazaki H, Koide R, King D, Mason W, Sansing LH, Dichter MA, Rosenfeld MR, Lynch DR. Paraneoplastic anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor encephalitis associated with ovarian teratoma. Ann Neurol. 2007 Jan;61(1):25-36. Notably, this is the second neuronal cell surface antigen (after anti-

voltage-gated potassium channel Voltage-gated potassium channels (VGKCs) are transmembrane channels specific for potassium and sensitive to voltage changes in the cell's membrane potential. During action potentials, they play a crucial role in returning the depolarized ce ...

(VGKC) antibodies described by

Angela Vincent Angela Vincent (born 1942) is Emeritus professor at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Somerville College, Oxford. Career and research Angela Vincent was born in 1942, the third child of Carmen and Joseph Molony (later KCVO). After St M ...

and colleagues) associated with autoimmune encephalitis.Buckley C, Oger J, Clover L, Tuzun E, Carpenter K, Jackson M, Vincent A. Potassium channel antibodies in two patients with reversible limbic encephalitis. Ann Neurol. 2001 Jul;50(1):73-8.

Anti-mGluR

Additionally, antibodies to the

mGluR1 The glutamate receptor, metabotropic 1, also known as GRM1, is a human gene which encodes the metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 (mGluR1) protein. Function L-glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system and ...

subunit of the

metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 The glutamate receptor, metabotropic 1, also known as GRM1, is a human gene which encodes the metabotropic glutamate receptor 1 (mGluR1) protein. Function L-glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system and ...

have been shown in a small group of ataxia patients.Coesmans M, Smitt PA, Linden DJ, Shigemoto R, Hirano T, Yamakawa Y, van Alphen AM, Luo C, van der Geest JN, Kros JM, Gaillard CA, Frens MA, de Zeeuw CI. Mechanisms underlying cerebellar motor deficits due to mGluR1-autoantibodies. Ann Neurol. 2003 Mar;53(3):325-36. Anti-glutamate receptor antibodies are also detected in various non-immunological neurological diseases such as

stroke A stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop functionin ...

and

trauma Trauma most often refers to: * Major trauma, in physical medicine, severe physical injury caused by an external source * Psychological trauma, a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a severely distressing event *Traumatic i ...

.During MJ, Symes CW, Lawlor PA, Lin J, Dunning J, Fitzsimons HL, Poulsen D, Leone P, Xu R, Dicker BL, Lipski J, Young D. An oral vaccine against NMDAR1 with efficacy in experimental stroke and epilepsy. Science. 2000 Feb 25;287(5457):1453-60.Bokesch PM, Izykenova GA, Justice JB, Easley KA, Dambinova SA. NMDA receptor antibodies predict adverse neurological outcome after cardiac surgery in high-risk patients. Stroke. 2006 Jun;37(6):1432-6.

References

{{Autoantibodies Autoantibodies