AUTO-IMMUNITY IN HASHIMOTO'S DISEASE AND ITS IMPLICATIONS*

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Abstract
RECENT workers (1, 2, 3) have described abnormalities in the serum proteins of patients with Hashimoto's disease, namely, high values for gamma globulins and for the results of flocculation tests. The highest values were obtained in untreated patients with large goiters. During the months following removal of the goiter, these abnormal levels slowly returned to the normal range (4). The known association of gamma globulins with circulating antibodies and the infiltration of the diseased thyroid gland with plasma cells and lymphoid tissue (which are known to produce antibodies) suggested that the disease process and the postoperative findings might be explained if it were postulated that these patients were immunized against an antigen in the thyroid gland. Confirmation of this hypothesis is provided by the results of the present studies, which demonstrate the presence of thyroid-specific precipitating auto-antibodies in the sera of such patients. Preliminary reports of this work have appeared (5, 6).

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