Does multiple sclerosis originate in the gut?

Abstract

Autoreactive T and B cells may have important roles in multiple sclerosis, but what triggers autoreactivity is unclear. Here, the authors examined a relapsing–remitting variant of spontaneously developing murine experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). In this multiple sclerosis model, disease is driven by T cells that recognize a myelin autoantigen, and by recruited B cells that produce autoantibodies. Interestingly, relapsing–remitting mice that had been brought up in a germ-free environment, and hence had no commensal gut microbes, did not develop EAE and had impaired B-cell recruitment, suggesting that such microbes may have a role in multiple sclerosis.