Association of anti-Helicobacter pylori neutrophil-activating protein antibody response with anti-aquaporin-4 autoimmunity in Japanese patients with multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica

Mult Scler. 2009 Dec;15(12):1411-21. doi: 10.1177/1352458509348961. Epub 2009 Nov 13.

Abstract

There are two distinct subtypes of multiple sclerosis (MS) in Asians: opticospinal (OSMS) and conventional (CMS). OSMS has similar features to neuromyelitis optica (NMO) and half of OSMS patients have the NMO-Immunoglobulin G (IgG)/ anti-aquaporin-4 (AQP4) antibody. We reported that Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection was significantly less common in CMS patients than controls. To reveal the immune responses to the H. pylori neutrophil-activating protein (HP-NAP) in Japanese MS patients, according to anti-AQP4 antibody status, sera from 162 MS patients, 37 patients with other inflammatory neurological diseases (OIND), and 85 healthy subjects were assayed for anti-H. pylori antibodies, anti-HP-NAP antibodies, and myeloperoxidase (MPO) by enzyme immunoassays. H. pylori seropositivity rates were significantly higher in anti-AQP4 antibody-positive MS/NMO (AQP4 + /MS) patients (19/27, 70.4%) than anti-AQP4 antibody-negative CMS (AQP4 - /CMS) patients (22/83, 26.5%). Among H. pylori-infected individuals, the anti-HP-NAP antibody was significantly more common in AQP4 + /MS and AQP4 - /OSMS patients than healthy subjects (36.8%, 34.6% versus 2.8%). Among the AQP4 + /MS patients, a significant positive correlation between anti-HP-NAP antibody levels and the final Kurtzke's Expanded Disability Status Scale scores was found, and MPO levels were higher in anti-HP-NAP antibody-positive patients than anti-HP-NAP antibody-negative ones. Therefore, HP-NAP may be associated with the pathology of anti-AQP4 antibody-related neural damage in MS/NMO patients.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Antibodies, Bacterial / blood*
  • Aquaporin 4 / immunology*
  • Asian People
  • Autoantibodies / blood*
  • Autoimmunity*
  • Bacterial Proteins / immunology*
  • Disability Evaluation
  • Female
  • Helicobacter Infections / ethnology
  • Helicobacter Infections / immunology*
  • Helicobacter Infections / microbiology
  • Helicobacter pylori / immunology*
  • Humans
  • Japan
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Multiple Sclerosis / ethnology
  • Multiple Sclerosis / immunology*
  • Multiple Sclerosis / microbiology
  • Multiple Sclerosis / therapy
  • Neuromyelitis Optica / ethnology
  • Neuromyelitis Optica / immunology*
  • Neuromyelitis Optica / microbiology
  • Neuromyelitis Optica / therapy
  • Peroxidase / blood
  • Prevalence
  • Recurrence
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Treatment Outcome
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • AQP4 protein, human
  • Antibodies, Bacterial
  • Aquaporin 4
  • Autoantibodies
  • Bacterial Proteins
  • neutrophil-activating protein A, Helicobacter pylori
  • Peroxidase