Molecular Architecture of the Goodpasture Autoantigen in Anti-GBM Nephritis
BACKGROUND In Goodpasture's disease, circulating autoantibodies bind to the noncollagenous-1 (NC1) domain of type IV collagen in the glomerular basement membrane (GBM). The specificity and molecular architecture of epitopes of tissue-bound autoantibodies are unknown. Alport's post-transplantation nephritis, which is mediated by allo-antibodies against the GBM, occurs after kidney transplantation i