Anti‑livin antibodies in Hashimoto thyroiditis

INTRODUCTION Livin belongs to the family of apoptosis inhibitors. High livin expression is observed in malignancies of the gastrointestinal tract, lungs, breast, and kidneys, but it is not present in differentiated adult tissues. In some malignant processes, anti‑livin antibodies are present.
OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of anti‑livin antibodies in Hashimoto thyroiditis, a disease characterized by rapid and widespread thyrocyte apoptosis.
PATIENTS AND METHODS The study comprised 65 women with Hashimoto thyroiditis and the control group of 40 healthy women. In the majority of the patients, clinical manifestations of hypothyroidism were observed; all patients had high levels of serum antithyroid peroxidase antibodies. A solid‑phase radioimmunoassay in livin‑coated polyethylene tubes using 125I-labeled protein A was used to determine anti-livin antibodies.
RESULTS Significant amounts of anti-livin antibodies were reported in 18 patients (26.8%); 3 patients (4.6%) had borderline antibody levels; while in controls only 1 patient was positive (2.5%, P <0.0001).
CONCLUSIONS In Hashimoto thyroiditis, an autoimmune process is more general and involves numerous autoantibodies including an antibody against apoptosis inhibitor – livin. Anti‑livin antibodies cannot serve only as a marker of malignancy because they are also present in autoimmune processes.