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MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS
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MS and Diabetes is closely linked – Milk protein a common factor MS
and Type 1 diabetes are far more closely linked than previously thought. A
team of researchers in Toronto, Canada found that protein from cow`s milk is an
important risk factor in the development of both diseases in people who are
genetically susceptible. Both
MS and diabetes are autoimmune disorders, where the body`s immune system turns
against itself. Both conditions are almost identical in their geographic and
ethnic distribution, genetic similarities, and environmental risk factors The
scientists, let by Dr Michael Dosch of the Hospital for Sick Children,
discovered a high degree of similarity between the two conditions. A widely used
mouse model for diabetes could also develop an Ms like disease. “Much
to our surprise, we found that immunologically, type 1 diabetes and multiple
sclerosis are almost the same – in a test tube you can barely tell the two
diseases apart,” said Dr Dosch. “We found that the autoimmunity was not
specific to the organ system affected by disease. Previously it was though that
in MS autoimmunity would develop in the central nervous system, and in diabetes
it would only be found in the pancreas. We found that both tissues are targeted
in each disease.” In
both diabetes and MS, most patients showed abnormal immunity to cow`s milk
protein, suggesting that similar processes may contribute to both diseases. If
confirmed in a larger study, scientists may prove that changing the diet can
influence the course of both MS and diabetes. They also want to test the
possibility of intervening during the latency period of MS. In
both diabetes and MS there is a long, drawn-out period of silent disease before
the appearance of systems. In diabetes, scientists want to intervene during this
period by dietary means in a bid to stop the development of the full-blown
disease. Similar effects are planned for people who are at high risk of getting
MS. An
extract from the Journal of Immunology Immunology
(April 1 2001) |
