Why women are more likely than men to get multiple sclerosis

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

Genetic influences may explain why women are more susceptible to multiple sclerosis.
It has long been known that women run twice the risk of getting multiple sclerosis (MS) compared to men. Now a team at the Mayo Clinic is a step closer to understanding why this might be.

They have found that women tend to have a higher level of a protein called interferon gamma. Previous work has suggested that high levels of the protein tend to worsen MS perhaps by promoting inflammation within the nervous system. In the current study, we learn that women are more likely to have a genetic variant that leads to more interferon gamma being produced by the body. The findings may lead to a better understanding of MS - which is still somewhat of a mystery to doctors - as well as new diagnostic approaches and therapies.

Source
Genes & Immunity online 27th January 2005