Antibody linked to MS significantly higher in spinal fluid of blacks

An antibody frequently used as a diagnostic marker for multiple sclerosis (MS) is present at greater levels in the cerebrospinal fluid of blacks with MS than Caucasians with the disease.
The findings suggest that genetic differences among ethnic groups contribute to changes in the immune system, affecting susceptibility to MS. And they add another piece to a tantalizing but stubborn puzzle: Why do blacks get MS less often than other ethnic groups but suffer more serious symptoms when they develop the disease"

"These antibodies are indicators of inflammation, but we don't yet understand how inflammation is linked to prognosis," says first author John R. Rinker II, M.D., who did the work as a fellow at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and is now assistant professor of neurology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. "No one really understands yet why inflammation levels differ from one MS patient to the next."