AUTHOR=van de Burgt Nikita A. , Kulsvehagen Laila , Mané-Damas Marina , Lutz Luc , Lecourt Anne-Catherine , Monserrat Clara , Vinke Anita M. , Küçükali Cem İ. , Zong Shenghua , Hoffmann Carolin , González-Vioque Emiliano , Arango Celso , Leibold Nicole K. , Losen Mario , Molenaar Peter C. , Tüzün Erdem , van Beveren Nico J. M. , Mané Anna , Rouhl Rob P. W. , van Amelsvoort Therese A. M. J. ,  for Genetic Risk and Outcome of Psychosis (GROUP) Investigators , Pröbstel Anne-Katrin , Martinez-Martinez Pilar 

TITLE=Autoantibodies against myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein in a subgroup of patients with psychotic symptoms

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neurology

VOLUME=Volume 16 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neurology/articles/10.3389/fneur.2025.1593042

DOI=10.3389/fneur.2025.1593042

ISSN=1664-2295

ABSTRACT=The presence of autoantibodies against myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) is a hallmark of MOG antibody-associated disease (MOGAD), a recently defined demyelinating disease entity presenting with core clinical features of optic neuritis, myelitis, and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis. Although MOG antibodies have also been described in a small number of patients with other conditions, including mental disorders, their prevalence and clinical specificity in patients with isolated psychotic symptoms remain unclear. Here, we screened sera from 262 patients with at least one psychotic episode and 166 control subjects for the presence of MOG antibodies of the immunoglobulin G (IgG) isotype with a live cell-based assay. Serum reactivity to additional antigens was assessed by immunohistochemistry. Four patients, representing 1.5% of the patient cohort, and one control individual, representing. 0.6% of the healthy control cohort, were seropositive for MOG-IgG antibodies. Of the four MOG-IgG seropositive patients, three experienced visual hallucinations. Overall, MOG antibodies were detected at a low frequency in patients with psychotic episodes. While we cannot exclude the possibility of false-positive results or seroconversion due to secondary myelin damage, the association with visual hallucinations in three out of four MOG-IgG seropositive patients may point toward an underlying autoimmune etiology.