The cause of multiple sclerosis, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nearly 3 million people worldwide, has remained unclear despite decades of research. Now, research published today (January 13) in Science bolsters the case that one of the chief suspects—Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a common cause of mononucleosis—can also trigger MS.
The research team examined the correlation between Epstein-Barr virus infection and MS in by analyzing serum samples and medical data collected from a cohort of more than 10 million US military service members, finding that EBV infections increased the odds of an MS diagnosis during their service by more than 32-fold. No such increases in likelihood were found for other viral infections. The researchers also found that, when they looked retrospectively at samples from the cohort members that were eventually diagnosed with MS, a biomarker for neurodegeneration became elevated only after EBV was detectable in their blood.
Lead author and ...
