Analysis of 45 candidate genes for disease modifying activity in multiple sclerosis.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a common inflammatory disease of the central nervous system unsurpassed for its variability in disease outcome. As little is conclusively known about MS disease mechanisms, we have selected a variety of candidate genes that may influence the prognosis of the disease based on their function. A cohort of sporadic MS cases, taken from opposite extremes of the putative distribution of long-term outcome using the most stringent clinical criteria to date, was used to determine the role of on MS disease severity. The MS cases selected represent the prognostic best 5 % (benign MS) and worst 5 % (malignant MS) of cases in terms of clinical outcome assessed by the EDSS. Genotyping the two sets of MS patients (112 benign and 51 malignant) and a replication cohort from Sardinia provided no evidence to suggest that the genes selected have any outcome modifying activity, although small effects of these genes cannot be ruled out.
Dept. of Clinical Neurology, University of Oxford, Level 3, West Wing, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK.
Sreeram V
SV
Ramagopalan
Gabriele C
GC
Deluca
Katie M
KM
Morrison
Blanca M
BM
Herrera
David A
DA
Dyment
Matthew R
MR
Lincoln
Sarah-Michelle
SM
Orton
Michael J
MJ
Chao
Alexandra
A
Degenhardt
Maura
M
Pugliatti
A Dessa
AD
Sadovnick
Stefano
S
Sotgiu
George C
GC
Ebers
D017668:Age of Onset; D004185:Disability Evaluation; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide / Q000235:genetics*; D011379:Prognosis; D012720:Severity of Illness Index