Multiple sclerosis: peripheral mononuclear cells inhibitPlasmodium falciparumgrowth and are activated by parasite antigens

The human genome has been subjected to selective
pressures to resist to infectious agents in spite
of a heavy segregational load. With this regard,
thalassaemia and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase
deficiency have been considered an efficient
genetic protection againstP. falciparummalaria in
Sardinia, insular Italy. In this island, some multiple
sclerosis (MS)-associated HLA haplotypes
have the highest odds ratios in the same highestrate
malarious areas of the island. Moreover, tumor
necrosis factor (TNF) polymorphisms epidemiologically
associated with both MS and malaria
are ten-fold more frequent amongst Sardinians compared
to other populations worldwide4. A possible
association between MS and malaria in this island
was never analysed experimentally. We studied the
immunological response of mononuclear cells toP. falciparumand the killing effect of macrophages
on parasites in Sardinian MS patients and in
matched healthy controls (HC).