title: The fine specificity of human T cell lines towards myelin basic protein peptides in southern Italian multiple sclerosis patients.
abstract: We studied the relationship between the HLA specificities associated with multiple sclerosis (MS) susceptibility in southern Italy and the reactivity of the human myelin basic protein (hMBP) immunogenic peptides 84-98 and 143-168, using short-term T-cell lines established from 9 MS patients and from 8 healthy individuals. In our population, DR15 was significantly associated with MS (34.9% in MS versus 13.7% in healthy controls, P < 0.05). This result is in agreement with the association found in northern Europe, but not with data obtained in a population from the island of Sardinia (Italy). In MS patients the frequency of reactive T-cell lines (TCL), tested for fine specificity against the immunodominant hMBP peptides 84-98 and 143-168, was increased for the hMBP 143-168 peptide (P < 0.05) but not for the 84-98 peptide. Although this reactivity was higher in DR15+ MS patients than in DR 15- MS patients, it seemed not to be associated with DR15 specificity in the MS population. Furthermore, there were no significant differences in frequency of reactive TCL to hMBP peptide 84-98 in DR15-positive or DR15-negative MS patients. Consequently, it appears that peptide 84-98, considered as a relevant autoantigen, is not implicated in the pathogenesis of MS in our population from southern Italy.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Biologia e Patologia Cellulare e Molecolare, Università di Napoli Federico II, Napoli, Italy.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Montanaro
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Sanna
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Matarese
authors.forename: B B
authors.initials: BB
authors.lastname: Larby
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Racioppi
authors.forename: P B
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: Carrieri
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bruno
authors.forename: N J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Davey
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zappacosta
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fontana
mesh_terms: D001324:Autoantigens / Q000276:immunology*; D002460:Cell Line; D006650:Histocompatibility Testing; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D004676:Myelin Basic Protein / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D001324:Autoantigens; D004676:Myelin Basic Protein