Journal
NEUROLOGY
Volume 70, Issue 13, Pages 1113-1118Publisher
LIPPINCOTT WILLIAMS & WILKINS
DOI: 10.1212/01.wnl.0000294325.63006.f8
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- NINDS NIH HHS [R01 NS47467, K08 NS046341] Funding Source: Medline
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Background: Individuals with high levels of antibodies to the Epstein - Barr virus nuclear antigen 1 (EBNA-1) have an increased risk of developing multiple sclerosis ( MS), but this association could be confounded by genetic susceptibility. Methods: We conducted a nested case-control study including 148 women with MS ( 18 with blood collected before disease onset) and 296 age-matched healthy women to determine whether the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) DRB1*1501 allele (DR15) and anti-Epstein-Barr virus ( anti-EBV) antibody titers are independent risk factors for MS. Results: The association between anti-EBNA-1 antibody titers and MS risk was not affected by adjustment for DR15 and was similar in DR15-positive and DR15-negative women. The relative risk of MS among DR15-positive women with elevated ( > 1: 320) anti-EBNA-1 titers was ninefold higher than that of DR15-negative women with low ( < 1: 80) anti-EBNA-1 titers. Conclusions: Anti-Epstein-Barr virus nuclear antigen 1 ( anti-EBNA-1) antibody titers are a risk factor for multiple sclerosis ( MS), independently from the DR15 allele. Carriers of the DR15 allele with elevated anti-EBNA-1 antibody titers may have a markedly increased risk of MS.
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