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NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS

Epstein–Barr virus and multiple sclerosis

Nature Reviews Neuroscience volume 23, page 133 (2022)Cite this article

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The cause of multiple sclerosis (MS) is not known, but one hypothesis is that it is triggered by infection with Epstein–Barr virus (EBV). This has been difficult to study, not least because most adults will be infected by EBV at some point in their lives. Here, the authors assessed this hypothesis in a large cohort of young adults serving in the US military. The authors identified 955 individuals who developed MS during their service period. Through the collection of multiple serum samples across time for individuals in this cohort, they found that EBV infection was associated with a 32-fold increase in risk of developing MS.

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Original article

  • Bjornevik, K. et al. Longitudinal analysis reveals high prevalence of Epstein-Barr virus associated with multiple sclerosis. Science 375, 296–301 (2022)

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  1. Nature Reviews Neuroscience http://www.nature.com/nrn/

    Darran Yates

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  1. Darran Yates
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Correspondence to Darran Yates.

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Yates, D. Epstein–Barr virus and multiple sclerosis. Nat Rev Neurosci 23, 133 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41583-022-00566-9

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