Possible Biomarker of MS-like Autoimmune Disease Discovered

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is characterized by areas of inflammation in the central nervous system. The immune system attacks the body’s own structures and destroys the covering of nerve cells, known as the myelin sheath. The picture research has painted of the illness is somewhat more complicated, however. It can cause a variety of neurological symptoms, like paresthesia and paralysis of the limbs, which progressively or abruptly worsen. When talking about this disease a treatment may work for some patients — but make the condition worse in others.

“There’s a huge amount of diversity in how inflammatory autoimmune diseases of the central nervous system like multiple sclerosis present,” explains Professor Anne-Katrin Pröbstel. Researchers have been gradually discovering the key distinctive features of “atypical” cases of MS for the past ten years. 

In a study of roughly 1,300 patients, Pröbstel’s team has now discovered a biomarker that may make it possible to differentiate another MS-like illness from the others. 

The team discovered a specific antibody, a type of immunoglobulin A (IgA), in one group of patients. The antibody attacks a component of the myelin sheath called “MOG” (which stands for “myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein”). IgA antibodies are typically responsible for protecting mucous membranes.

Next, the researchers want to decipher the role of MOG-IgA and the clinical characteristics arising from it in more detail. “By distinguishing between myelin-destroying autoimmune diseases that were previously all called MS, we’re taking an important step towards a better understanding of the causes of these illnesses and towards individualized treatments,” says the neurologist. Ultimately, the researchers hope to discover what treatments are most effective under what conditions.

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Sources:

Ana Beatriz Ayroza Galvão Ribeiro Gomes, Laila Kulsvehagen, Patrick Lipps, Alessandro Cagol, Nuria Cerdá-Fuertes, Tradite Neziraj, Julia Flammer, Jasmine Lerner, Anne-Catherine Lecourt, Nina de Oliveira S. Siebenborn, Rosa Cortese, Sabine Schaedelin, Vinicius Andreoli Schoeps, Aline de Moura Brasil Matos, Natalia Trombini Mendes, Clarissa dos Reis Pereira, Mario Luiz Ribeiro Monteiro, Samira Luisa dos Apóstolos-Pereira, Patrick Schindler, Claudia Chien, Carolin Schwake, Ruth Schneider, Thivya Pakeerathan, Orhan Aktas, Urs Fischer, Matthias Mehling, Tobias Derfuss, Ludwig Kappos, Ilya Ayzenberg, Marius Ringelstein, Friedemann Paul, Dagoberto Callegaro, Jens Kuhle, Athina Papadopoulou, Cristina Granziera, Anne-Katrin Pröbstel. Immunoglobulin A Antibodies Against Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein in a Subgroup of Patients With Central Nervous System Demyelination. JAMA Neurology, 2023; DOI: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2023.2523

University of Basel. “Possible biomarker of MS-like autoimmune disease discovered.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 8 August 2023. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/08/230808110850.htm>.

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