Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the incidence of antibodies against neuronal surface antigens (NSA-ab) in patients with different types of epilepsy, in comparison with the subjects diagnosed with immune-mediated disorders. Methods: Forty patients with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE) of unknown origin, 16 with post-stroke epilepsy, and 23 with systemic autoimmune disorders (SAD) with CNS involvement were included. NSA-ab were sought in serum using indirect immunofluorescence method. Relationships were analyzed between presence of NSA-ab and clinical presentation. Results: NSA-ab was detected in the sera from five patients: anti-DPPX in one patient, anti-AMPAR1/R2 in two, anti-LGI1 in one and, in one case, both anti-CASPR2 and DPPX IgG. Out of these five patients, three represented the SAD subgroup and two the DRE subgroup. None of the patients with post-stroke epilepsy was positive for NSA-ab. Significance: Autoimmune etiology is worth considering in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy of unknown origin. The presence of NSA-ab in patients with systemic autoimmune disorders may be caused by unspecifically enhanced autoimmune reactivity. NSA-ab seem not to be related to epilepsy resulting from ischemic brain injury.

Muscarinic receptor dysfunction has been suggested to play an important role in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. Recently, it has also become clear that immune reactivity directed against neurotransmitter receptors may play a pathogenic role in some cases of schizophrenia. The aim of this review is to summarize the case for muscarinic receptor dysfunction in schizophrenia and the evidence supporting the hypothesis that this dysfunction is related to the development of muscarinic receptor-targeting antibodies.
The article reviews studies of muscarinic receptors and the presence and potential role(s) of anti-muscarinic acetylcholine receptor antibodies in people with schizophrenia.
There is accumulating evidence that altered or deficient muscarinic signalling underlies some of the key clinical features of schizophrenia. Although the number of studies investigating anti-muscarinic acetylcholine receptor antibodies in schizophrenia is relatively small, they consistently demonstrate that such antibodies are present in a proportion of patients. This evidence suggests that these antibodies could have pathogenic effects or exist as a biomarker to an unknown pathophysiological process in schizophrenia.
The presence of elevated levels of anti-muscarinic acetylcholine receptor antibodies may identify a subgroup of people with schizophrenia, potentially informing aetiopathogenesis, clinical presentation and treatment. To date, all studies have examined antibodies in participants with chronic schizophrenia, who have likely received antipsychotic medication for many years. As these medications modulate immune functions and regulate receptor densities, it is recommended that future studies screen for the presence of anti-muscarinic antibodies in people experiencing their first episode of psychosis.

Recent years of research have shed a new light on the role of IgE in immune reactions. It seems to be more than just a contribution to immediate type of allergic response. It appears that monomeric IgE may enhance mast cell activity without cross-linking of FcεRI by IgE specific allergen or autoreactive IgG anti-IgE antibodies. Monomeric IgE molecules are heterogeneous concerning their ability to induce survival and activation of mast cells only by binding the IgE to FcεRI, but not affecting degranulation of cells. It also turned out that IgE may react to autoantigens occurring in the blood not only in chronic spontaneous urticaria (CSU) but also in other autoimmune diseases. The aforementioned phenomena may promote the activity of mast cells/basophils in CSU that easily degranulate when influenced by various inner (autoreactive IgG against IgE and FcεRI, autoreactive IgE for self-antigens) and outer factors (cold, heat, pressure) or allergens. These findings forced the new approach to the role of autoimmunity, self-antigens and IgE autoantibodies in the pathology of CSU. CSU put in the scheme of autoreactive IgG and autoreactive IgE seems to be either a kind of an autoimmune disease or a clinical manifestation of some other defined autoimmune diseases or both.

Focal and segmental glomerular sclerosis (FSGS) is a histological pattern characterized by the partial sclerosis of some, but not all, glomeruli. It may be secondary to diverse etiologies such as mutations of podocyte key genes, loss of nephrons, drugs, and virus infection. However, in most cases of FSGS, the etiology is unknown and these forms are called idiopathic (primary) FSGS. A number of different pathogenic hypotheses have been proposed. The frequent recurrence of nephrotic proteinuria after renal transplantation has attracted the attention to search for plasma factors eventually implicated in the pathogenesis. However a decisive and unifying hypothesis is still lacking. On the other hand, recent findings indicate the involvement of cellular immunity and possibly autoantibodies in the pathogenesis of some forms of FSGS. In this paper we report on the recent advances in the pathophysiology of idiopathic FSGS and suggest the possibility that at least some forms of idiopathic FSGS may be caused by autoimmune reactivity.