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SAGE Publications, Multiple Sclerosis Journal, 5(18), p. 605-609, 2011

DOI: 10.1177/1352458511426816

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EBV-specific immune responses in patients with multiple sclerosis responding to IFNβ therapy

This paper was not found in any repository, but could be made available legally by the author.
This paper was not found in any repository, but could be made available legally by the author.

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Abstract

Background: Symptomatic primary infection with the human γ-herpesvirus Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) and elevated immune responses to EBV are associated with the development and progression of multiple sclerosis (MS). Interferon-beta (IFNβ), first-line treatment for relapse-onset MS, exhibits complex immunoregulatory and antiviral activities. Objective: To determine EBV-specific immune responses in patients with MS during IFNβ therapy. Methods: We evaluated cellular and humoral immune responses to EBV- and human cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-encoded antigens in patients with MS before and 1 year after IFNβ treatment by ELISA and flow cytometry. Twenty-eight patients with MS who showed a clinical response to IFNβ as defined by the absence of relapses and lack of progression on the Expanded Disability Status Scale score during the first 2 years of treatment were included. Results: Clinically effective IFNβ-therapy was associated with a downregulation of proliferative T cell responses to the latent EBV nuclear antigen-1 (EBNA1). EBNA1-specific IgG responses as well as cellular and humoral immune responses to MHC class I restricted EBV antigens expressed during lytic replication and viral B cell transformation were similar before and after IFNβ therapy. Although HCMV-specific IgG levels slightly decreased, proliferative T-cell responses towards HCMV antigens remained unchanged during IFNβ therapy. Conclusion: Clinically effective IFNβ therapy is associated with a reduction of proliferative T-cell responses to EBNA1.