title: GENETIC POLYMORPHISMS OF HUMAN β-DEFENSINS IN PATIENTS WITH MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Recent studies have started to elucidate the contribution of microbiome to the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS). It is also supposed, that neuropathological alterations might be associated with abnormal expression and regulatory function of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), including defensins. It is in our interest to investigate the relevance of the single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of the DEFB1 gene and the copy number polymorphism of the DEFB4 genes in MS.
  
  
  METHODS
  DEFBI polymorphisms: c.-20G > A (rsl 1362), DEFB1 c.-44C > G (rsI 800972), DEFB1 c.-52G>A (rsl 799946), and the DEFB4 gene copy number were investigated in 250 MS patients The control patients comprised 232 age- and gender-matched healthy blood donors. The occurrence of the human β-defensin 2 peptide (hBD2) in the plasma of controls and patients-was determined by ELISA.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The DEFB1 c.-44C>G polymorphism the GG protective genotype was much less frequent among patients than among the controls. A higher frequency of a lower (<4) copy number of the DEFB4 gene was observed in the patients with MS as compared with the controls (43% vs. 28%, respectively). The median levels of the circulating hBD2 in the patients were 150.6 +/- 12.71 pg/ml vs. 262.1 +/- 23.82 pg/mI in the control group (p<0.0001). Our results suggest that β-defensins play role in the development of MS.
authors.forename: Márta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Szekeres
authors.forename: Ferenc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Somogyvári
authors.forename: Krisztina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bencsik
authors.forename: Zoltán
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Szolnoki
authors.forename: László
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Vécsei
authors.forename: Yvette
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mándi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D056915:DNA Copy Number Variations; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000235:genetics*; D020528:Multiple Sclerosis, Chronic Progressive / Q000235:genetics; D020529:Multiple Sclerosis, Relapsing-Remitting / Q000235:genetics; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D023083:beta-Defensins / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: C406407:DEFB1 protein, human; C106641:DEFB4A protein, human; D023083:beta-Defensins