Multiple sclerosis risk variants influence the peripheral B-cell compartment early in life in the general population

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is associated with abnormal B-cell function, and MS genetic risk alleles affect multiple genes that are expressed in B cells. However, how these genetic variants impact the B-cell compartment in early childhood is unclear. In the current study, we aim to assess whether polygenic risk scores (PRSs) for MS are associated with changes in the blood B-cell compartment in children from the general population.

Six-year-old children from the population-based Generation R Study were included. Genotype data were used to calculate MS-PRSs and B-cell subset-enriched MS-PRSs, established by designating risk loci based on expression and function. Analyses of variance were performed to examine the effect of MS-PRSs on total B-cell numbers (n = 1261) as well as naive and memory subsets (n = 675).

After correction for multiple testing, no significant associations were observed between MS-PRSs and total B-cell numbers and frequencies of subsets therein. A naive B-cell-MS-PRS (n = 26 variants) was significantly associated with lower relative, but not absolute, naive B-cell numbers (p = 1.03 × 10^-4 and p = 0.82, respectively), and higher frequencies and absolute numbers of CD27⁺ memory B cells (p = 8.83 × 10^-4 and p = 4.89 × 10^-3 , respectively). These associations remained significant after adjustment for Epstein-Barr virus seropositivity and the HLA-DRB1*15:01 genotype.

The composition of the blood B-cell compartment is associated with specific naive B-cell-associated MS risk variants during childhood, possibly contributing to MS pathophysiology later in life. Cell subset-specific PRSs may offer a more sensitive tool to define the impact of genetic risk on the immune system in diseases such as MS.