Investigation of TGFB2 as a candidate gene in multiple sclerosis and Parkinson's disease

Given the known roles of TGF beta 2 in both regulating the immune system and promoting the survival of dopaminergic neurons, it is feasible that genetic variations in TGF beta 2 might play an aetiological role in neurological diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Parkinson's disease (PD). Hence we performed an indirect association analysis of TGFB2 using 8 haplotype-tagging SNPs in a population of 937 MS patients, 538 PD cases and 2022 controls. We found no evidence for association with susceptibility or progression of MS, but have demonstrated a trend towards association of the 5' region of the gene with susceptibility to PD. Further analysis of TGFB2 is warranted in other PD cohorts.