Blood Work Might be Able to Predict Course of MS
The Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society writes that a study at the Institute of Neurology, performed by UCL and the Institute of Cell and Molecular Biology, Barts and The London suggest that differing antibody levels produced in response to the common virus Epstein Barr Virus (EBV), may predict the course of MS.
The findings could help give insight into how the body progresses into patients that will develop MS, and how to find the appropriate treatments.
Clinical Research Fellow Dr Rachel Farrell, said: “All the participants in our study had previous history of infection with EBV, which has been shown in other studies and is not surprising given that a large majority of the adult population is infected with EBV… The levels of a molecule in the blood called anti-EBNA-1 IgG, induced by the virus, were associated with the activity of MS”. The study shows that participants who had new areas of MS damage in the brain also had high levels of the anti-EBNA-1 IgG molecule in their blood.
Learn more about MS through NorthShore University HealthSystem’s neurosciences department.
