Turning on the thyroid

[shambles]

"We discovered a small amino acid sequence - we call it p10 because it is 10 amino acids long -- within the TSH receptor protein," Schöneberg explains. This sequence "functions as activator of the receptor upon binding of the hormone or autoantibodies."

In other words, the receptor itself flips the switch -- when it should and when it shouldn't.

eurekalert.org/pub_releases...

CREDIT

Journal of Biological Chemistry (doi: 10.1074/jbc.M115.701102)

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

Excellent, shambles. Thank you.

The thoughts that come tumbling out from this... The fact that they seem to have established a fundamental mechanism. Perhaps it will answer my long-standing question about the impact of the glycosylation level of TSH? - that is something that varies but we have no real idea as to what impact is has.

Sadly, it will probably take the usual 14 or 17 or whatever it is years before it has even the slightest impact on clinical practice.