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Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein (MOG35-55) Induced Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (EAE) in C57BL/6 Mice
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T cells of multiple sclerosis patients target a common environmental peptide that causes encephalitis in mice

S Winer1, I Astsaturov, R K Cheung

  • 1The Hospital For Sick Children, Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Journal of Immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950)
|March 20, 2001
PubMed

Insights

Multiple sclerosis (MS) risk may be linked to cow milk protein (CMP) consumption. Researchers found specific CMP immune responses in MS patients, suggesting a potential environmental trigger for CNS autoimmunity.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Neuroscience
  • Autoimmune Diseases

Background:

  • Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease with unknown environmental triggers in genetically susceptible individuals.
  • Previous research suggests a link between high cow milk protein (CMP) consumption and MS risk, similar to associations found in autoimmune diabetes.
  • A rodent study indicated that immune responses to CMP (butyrophilin) could cause encephalitis via antigenic mimicry with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate T cell immunity to CMPs in patients with multiple sclerosis.
  • To identify specific CMP epitopes targeted by the immune system in MS patients.
  • To evaluate the encephalitogenic potential of identified CMP epitopes in a mouse model.

Main Methods:

  • Assessed T cell immunity to various CMPs in MS patients and compared it to that in diabetes patients.
  • Performed epitope mapping using bovine serum albumin (BSA) to identify specific targeted peptides.
  • Induced experimental autoimmune encephalitis (EAE) in SJL/J mice using the identified epitope BSA(193) to test its encephalitogenicity.

Main Results:

  • Abnormal T cell immunity to several CMPs was observed in MS patients, similar to findings in diabetes patients.
  • A specific epitope, BSA(193), was identified as a target for most MS patients but not for diabetes patients.
  • The BSA(193) epitope demonstrated encephalitogenic properties in mice, inducing experimental autoimmune encephalitis.

Conclusions:

  • The findings suggest a potential immunological basis connecting MS risk, CMP consumption, and central nervous system (CNS) autoimmunity.
  • The identification of BSA(193) in both MS patients and an animal model of encephalitis implies a possible common endogenous ligand involved in antigenic mimicry.
  • This research expands the understanding of environmental factors contributing to MS pathogenesis through immune cross-reactivity.

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