Key result
HTLV-1-specific antibodies were absent in 40 of 41 multiple sclerosis patients and all 33 controls, providing no support for HTLV-1 involvement in MS etiology.
Why the study?
Is there an association between multiple sclerosis and antibodies to human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1)?
Case-Control (n=74)
Is there an association between multiple sclerosis and antibodies to human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1)?
The study finds no evidence to support the involvement of HTLV-1 infection in the etiology of multiple sclerosis.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
No support for HTLV-1 testing in MS; leaves open other infectious contributions to etiology for prospective study.
The possible association between multiple sclerosis (MS) and antibodies to human T-cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) was studied. Five synthetic and highly immunoreactive HTLV-1 peptides, four from the envelope (env) region and one from the core (gag) region, were used in an indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Presence of HTLV-1-specific antibodies in paired serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from 41 MS patients were investigated. No antibody reactivity was demonstrable in samples from 40 of them, whereas one reacted in one serum sample against the gag-peptide. Serum and CSF specimens from 15 with other neurologic diseases (OND), and negative control specimens, i.e. serum and CSF from 9 non-neurologic controls and CSF from 9 healthy controls, did not demonstrate any reactivity in the peptide-ELISAs. Our results do not support involvement of HTLV-1 infection in the etiology of MS.
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Lycke et al. (2009) conducted a case-control in Multiple sclerosis (n=74). HTLV-1 infection vs. Controls (other neurologic diseases, non-neurologic, and healthy controls) was evaluated on Presence of HTLV-1-specific antibodies in paired serum and cerebrospinal fluid. HTLV-1-specific antibodies were absent in 40 of 41 multiple sclerosis patients and all 33 controls, providing no support for HTLV-1 involvement in MS etiology.
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