Estudio Inmunológico en la Esclerosis Múltiple Familiar: citocinas, moléculas de adhesión y receptores de quimiocinas

by Malagelada Seckler, Ana

Familial aggregation of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is demonstrated by increased risk of developing the disease in first- and second-degree relatives of MS patients, high concordance rate in monozygotic twins and the description of susceptibility genes. On the other hand, there is clear evidence of the autoimmune pathogenesis of MS and also of an increased incidence of other autoimmune diseases in MS patients and their relatives. The objective of our study was to evaluate in Mutiplex MS families if MS patients and their healthy relatives share common immunological traits. We have examined 26 MS patients (21 EMRR, 5 EMSP) and 29 healthy first- or second-degree relatives in 13 Multiplex families and 26 age and sex matched healthy controls. We have studied by means of immunofluorescence surface and intracytoplasmatic staining of peripheral blood mononuclear cells, six molecules that play an important role in MS pathogenesis : two cytokine (IFN-_, IL-6), two adhesion molecule (L-selectina, VLA-4) and two chemokine receptors (CCR5 y CXCR3). Our results have demonstrated an increased production of IFN-_ by peripheral blood T lymphocyte of MS patients and their healthy relatives compared to controls, and a lower expression of L-selectin by peripheral blood monocytes of MS patients and their healthy relatives compared to controls. These findings show that both MS patients and unaffected family members of Multiplex MS families have lymphocytes with an increased proinflamatory potential and monocytes with a higher grade of activation than general population. In conclusion, this study supports the hypothesis that healthy relatives of MS patients share distinguishing immunological traits with MS patients that may be expression of their higher susceptibility to suffer this disease.