summary: MS is a complex disease with a very clear geographical distribution. It is thought that both environment and genes play a role in this geographical distribution. This study involved people with MS from Canada of Caucasian-North American Aboriginal admixture. The authors found that among those siblings with MS born in families where the mother was Caucasian and the father was North American Aboriginal, the proportion of females with MS was higher than among those people with MS born from a Caucasian father and a North American Aboriginal mother. Moreover, the risk of recurrence of MS among these siblings was higher for those families where the mother was Caucasian and father was North American Aboriginal than the other way around. These findings suggest that the risk of MS conferred by one of the parents (the one of Caucasian origin) seems to be different depending on the sex of the parent that confers higher risk. This could mean that either the genetic influence on the risk of MS or the interaction between genetics and environment on the development of MS are different depending on the sex of the parent who confers the high risk for MS. This study helps us to better understand the pathogenesis of the disease, though further studies are needed.

authors: Ramagopalan SV, Yee IM, Dyment DA, Orton SM, Marrie RA, Sadovnick AD, Ebers GC; For the Canadian Collaborative Study Group

source: Neurology. 2009 Jun 10

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category: Genetics
category: Epidemiology

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