[Blood serum immunoglobulins from patients with juvenile struma reduce the cAMP level in isolated human thyrocytes].

Clinico-hormonal examinations of 19 patients with juvenile struma revealed in many of them signs of latent hypothyrosis (increased age-specific level of blood serum TTH level and hyperergic reaction to TRH). Incubation of thyrocytes isolated from perinodular tissue of patients with euthyroid nodular goiter with IgG isolated from the blood serum of patients with juvenile struma resulted in a reliably lower content of cAMP in the cells than after thyrocyte incubation with IgG isolated from the blood serum of 9 healthy donors. This is indicative of the presence of thyroblocking antibodies in the blood serum of patients with juvenile struma. Though no correlation could be traced between the tested immunoglobulin activity, on the one hand, and blood serum TTH level and struma size, on the other, one may propose a contribution of thyroblocking antibodies to the pathogenesis of juvenile struma.