Identification of antigenic domains on the human sodium-iodide symporter which are recognized by autoantibodies from patients with autoimmune thyroid disease.
The mechanisms of NIS regulation with respect to cytokine modulation in thyroid autoimmune disease remain still unproven and data of experimental in vivo studies and clinical trials in patients with thyroid autoimmune disease have to further elucidate these open questions in the future.
Further, there is increasing evidence that NIS-directed antibodies are present in sera from patients with autoimmune thyroid disease, and these antibodies also may affect NIS functional activity.
Apart from these therapeutic and diagnostic perspectives the availability of the NIS gene will also open new opportunities to develop sensitive and homologous diagnostic test systems to identify factors involved in autoimmune thyroid disease, evolution of goitre, adenoma and thyroid cancer as well as NIS-directed new drugs.