Rotondo DG, Leo M, Ricciardi R, et al. - This study was sought to evaluate the role of the thymus in thyroid autoimmunity. Researchers included a total of 107 myasthenia gravis patients. The behavior of anti-thyroglobulin autoantibodies (TgAbs) and anti-thyroperoxidase autoantibodies (TPOAbs) over time relative to thymectomy was the main outcome measure. In the absence of thyroid dysfunction, serum TgAbs and/or TPOAbs were detected in around 20% of patients. In patients who underwent thymectomy, the prevalence of positive serum TgAbs and/or TPOAbs decreased significantly over the follow-up period, but not in those who were not thymectomized. In patients who underwent thymectomy, there was a general trend towards a reduction in the serum concentrations of anti-thyroid autoantibodies, which was significant for TPOAbs. The data revealed the thymus plays a role in the maintenance of humoral thyroid autoimmunity.