FIGHT-MG is a European consortium including 12 scientific teams from 7 different countries (France, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, Norway, Switzerland). This project focused on Myasthenia Gravis disease aims to shed light on the course, etiological and pathological mechanisms and to develop new diagnostic and therapy tools.

Myasthenia Gravis (MG) is a heterogeneous rare autoimmune neurological disease affecting the neuromuscular junction (NMJ). The molecular events causing and maintaining MG are still unknown and current treatments do not lead to remission and entail considerable side-effects stressing the need for improved therapies.

The FIGHT-MG project aims to:

1. Determine factors associated with disease onset and/or affecting the course of the disease.
2. Identify new genetic, epigenetic and environmental risk factors and investigate immunological key molecules associated with MG onset.
3. Study the pathogenic mechanisms at the neuromuscular junction (molecular and morphological changes)
4. Establish new diagnostic and monitoring assays, by identifying pathogenic and protective factors, improving the sensitivity of current assays and discovering new biomarkers
5. Establish novel therapies by targeting several levels of the pathogenic response.

This multidisciplinary project linking basic researchers with clinical neurologists, SMEs and several European patient associations should favor a translational approach for improved MG management.

The scientific coordination is under the responsibility of S. Berrih-Aknin, DSc (Institute of Myology) and the project is managed by Inserm-Transfert.