Increased Bax/Bcl-2 ratio up-regulates caspase-3 and increases apoptosis in the thymus of patients with myasthenia gravis.

This study has demonstrated that in patients with MG who underwent thymectomy: a) the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio may up-regulate caspase-3 expression and modulate apoptosis associated with progress of the disease; b) the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio < 1 was associated with complete stable remission after thymectomy; and c) Bax/Bcl-2 ratio was an independent predictive marker for therapeutic response after thymectomy.