Anti-Glycoprotein V Autoantibodies in Patients with Immune Thrombocytopenia: Regularly Detectable and Functionally Relevant

Immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) results from autoimmunization against platelet antigens. Autoantibodies (aabs) are considered to represent a major mechanism of thrombocytopenia in ITP by inducing platelet clearance from the circulation. Several lines of evidence demonstrate that aabs against glycoproteins (GP) IIb/IIIa and Ib/IX are predominant in ITP patients. Both disease severity and treatment response rates to specific therapeutics have been associated with aabs patterns. GP V is a well characterized immune target in Varicella-associated and drug-induced thrombocytopenia, but has never been studied systematically in ITP.