The review highlights that while viral and host genetic interactions cause demyelination in animal models, evidence for a specific viral etiology in human multiple sclerosis remains tentative.
No MS-specific virus identified to guide care; leaves open hypothesis-driven investigation of HHV-6 and MSRV in pathogenesis.
Animal models illustrate how viruses and host genetic factors may interact to cause immune-mediated demyelination. Similar mechanisms may take place in at least some forms of multiple sclerosis, a disease that is histopathologically heterogeneous. No 'multiple sclerosis virus' has been found yet, although recent data on human herpesvirus-6 antigens in multiple sclerosis brain warrant further investigation. Multiple sclerosis associated retrovirus, a recently described retroviral sequence isolated from multiple sclerosis material, is a member of the endogenous retrovirus-9 family. The association between the expression of this virus associated retrovirus and multiple sclerosis is only tentative.
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Monteyne et al. (1998) studied this question.
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