The triggers for the development of multiple sclerosis (MS) have not been fully understood
to date. One hypothesis proposes a viral etiology. Interestingly, viral proteins from human
endogenous retroviruses (HERVs) may play a role in the pathogenesis of MS. Allelic variants of
the HERV-K18 env gene represent a genetic risk factor for MS, and the envelope protein is considered
to be an Epstein–Barr virus-trans-activated superantigen. To further specify a possible role for
HERV-K18 in MS, the present study examined the immunogenicity of the purified surface unit (SU).
HERV-K18(SU) induced envelope-specific plasma IgG in immunized mice and triggered proliferation
of T cells isolated from these mice. It did not trigger phenotypic changes in a mouse model of experimental
autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Further studies are needed to investigate the underlying
mechanisms of HERV-K18 interaction with immune system regulators in more detail.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:DRESDEN/oai:qucosa:de:qucosa:89174 |
| Date | 22 January 2024 |
| Creators | Ilse, Victoria, Scholz, Rebekka, Wermann, Michael, Naumann, Marcel, Staege, Martin S., Roßner, Steffen, Cynis, Holger |
| Publisher | MDPI |
| Source Sets | Hochschulschriftenserver (HSSS) der SLUB Dresden |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion, doc-type:article, info:eu-repo/semantics/article, doc-type:Text |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Relation | 8330 |
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