Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an auto-immune condition that causes long-term muscle weakness.
To keep us healthy, our immune system uses specialised cells, called B-cells, to produce proteins known as antibodies. These antibodies recognise and attack viruses and bacteria that enter our body. But in some cases, the immune system attacks our own cells. This is called an auto-immune response, and it creates a health condition. In MG, the protein recognised by antibodies is called the acetylcholine receptor (AChR) ‒ this is needed for communication between nerves and muscles. However, it is unclear what triggers B-cells to produce antibodies that so strongly recognise and attack the AChR.