Effect of gender on T-cell proliferative responses to myelin proteolipid protein antigens in patients with multiple sclerosis and controls

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system. Gender influences both susceptibility to MS, with the disease being more common in women, and the clinical course of disease, with an increased proportion of males developing the primary progressive form...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of autoimmunity 2004-06, Vol.22 (4), p.345-352
Main Authors: Greer, Judith M., Csurhes, Peter A., Pender, Michael P., McCombe, Pamela A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amino Acid Sequence
Autoantigens - genetics
Biological and medical sciences
Case-Control Studies
Female
General aspects
Humans
Immunodominant Epitopes - genetics
Immunopathology
In Vitro Techniques
Lymphocyte Activation
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Molecular Sequence Data
Multiple Sclerosis - immunology
Multiple sclerosis and variants. Guillain barré syndrome and other inflammatory polyneuropathies. Leukoencephalitis
Myelin Basic Protein - genetics
Myelin Basic Protein - immunology
Myelin Proteolipid Protein - genetics
Myelin Proteolipid Protein - immunology
Neurology
Peptide Fragments - genetics
Peptide Fragments - immunology
Sex Characteristics
T-Lymphocytes - immunology
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Summary:Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an inflammatory demyelinating disorder of the central nervous system. Gender influences both susceptibility to MS, with the disease being more common in women, and the clinical course of disease, with an increased proportion of males developing the primary progressive form of the disease. The basis for these differences may include genetic and immunological factors, and the immunological differences between men and women may be influenced by the effects of the sex hormones. Over several years we have collected blood from MS patients and controls, and measured T-cell responses to myelin proteolipid protein (PLP) and myelin basic protein (MBP) and have shown increased responses to PLP in MS patients compared to healthy controls and patients with other neurological diseases. In the present study we analyzed data from over 500 individuals, to determine whether there are differences between males and females in their responses to PLP and MBP. We found that there was higher frequency of increased T-cell reactivity to immunodominant PLP peptides in women than in men, particularly in non-MS individuals. We suggest that this may be relevant to the higher prevalence of MS in women.
ISSN:0896-8411
1095-9157
DOI:10.1016/j.jaut.2004.03.004