The APOE variation, prominent in other neurological diseases, showed no influence on MS susceptibility, despite its location within the chromosome 19q13.2 region.
Previous studies did not show significant differences in the APOE allele frequencies in multiple sclerosis compared with controls but did not examine for correlation with disease severity.
APOE genotyping was determined by polymerase chain reaction and restriction enzyme digestion in 47 patients with MS who had been followed up every 3 months for 2 years as part of an open-label clinical trial with glatiramer acetate.
The aim of the study was to examine if apoE polymorphism or apoE levels contribute to the severity of the disease in patients with multiple sclerosis or the outcome of nerve damage in patients with herpes zoster infection.
An analysis of disease progression in 614 patients with MS from 379 families indicated that APOE-4 carriers are more likely to be affected with severe disease (P=.03), whereas a higher proportion of APOE-2 carriers exhibit a mild disease course (P=.02).
An analysis of disease progression in 614 patients with MS from 379 families indicated that APOE-4 carriers are more likely to be affected with severe disease (P=.03), whereas a higher proportion of APOE-2 carriers exhibit a mild disease course (P=.02).
According to the results of previous studies, APOE epsilon4 does not increase the risk of developing MS, but it may influence disease progression and ultimate disability.
We performed (1)H-MRS of the central portion of both hemispheres and APOE genotyping in 72 patients (52 women and 20 men; mean +/- SD age, 34.8 +/- 8.8 years) with clinically definite relapsing-remitting MS.
Inheritance of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) epsilon4 allele is associated with increased risk of Alzheimer disease, progression to disability in multiple sclerosis, and poor outcome after traumatic brain injury.
Although the low rate of epsilon4 allele in Japan should be taken into consideration, our results showed no relation between APOE gene polymorphisms and Japanese patients with MS.
The authors studied the association of an exon 4 (E4*epsilon2/3/4) and three promoter polymorphisms of APOE with disease course and severity stratified by gender in 221 patients with multiple sclerosis from two overlapping population-based prevalence cohorts.
Accelerated brain tissue loss and a higher proportion of lesions evolving into BH therefore provide magnetic resonance imaging evidence for more pronounced tissue destruction in MS patients with APOE-epsilon4.