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Researchers have identified a distinct profile of self-reactive antibodies appearing in the blood years before the first clinical signs of multiple sclerosis (MS), offering a potential diagnostic tool for early intervention in the neurodegenerative disease.

Multiple Sclerosis News Today reported that the antibodies discovered in approximately 10% of individuals who later developed MS were nearly 100% predictive of an eventual MS diagnosis. They targeted a protein sequence resembling that found in common pathogens infecting humans, notably the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), recently implicated as a prominent risk factor for MS.

According to Michael Wilson, M.D., a professor at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) and senior author of the study, "A diagnostic result like this makes such early intervention more likely, giving patients hope for a better life."

Published in Nature Medicine, the study, titled "An autoantibody signature predictive for multiple sclerosis," sheds light on the immune system's role in MS, wherein mistaken attacks on myelin, the protective sheath around nerve cells, occur.

The research team, led by scientists from UCSF and other U.S. institutions, analyzed blood samples from the U.S. Department of Defense Serum Repository, examining 250 MS patients' samples along with those of 250 healthy veterans.

Results revealed that approximately 10% of MS patients exhibited a specific autoantibody profile in their blood years before symptom onset, persisting over time and remaining detectable after diagnosis. These autoantibodies targeted a protein sequence resembling those found in common human pathogens, including hepatitis C virus, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, and EBV.

Further validation of the findings was conducted in a separate group of individuals, confirming the specificity of the autoantibody profile for MS diagnosis.

Joseph DeRisi, Ph.D., a UCSF professor and senior study author, emphasized, "It's when the immunological signature of a person looks like someone else... that we begin to suspect something is wrong."

While the precise triggers of these immune responses remain unclear, the researchers suggest prior infection with EBV or other common pathogens as potential factors. Moving forward, understanding the origins of this MS signature could provide valuable insights for disease management and treatment strategies.