Cellular-immune response to myelin protein: absence in multiple sclerosis and presence in cerebrovascular accidents

Summary: In 14 patients with multiple sclerosis, cell-mediated immunity to the basic protein of human myelin (BPM) was measured by lymphocyte transformation with incorporation of tritiated thymidine. Other patients studied included those with cerebrovascular accident, and various control groups. No transformation response of lymphocytes to BPM was observed in patients with multiple sclerosis, in the active or interval phase. However, significant transformation (p < 0.05) was detected in patients with brain damage due to cerebrovascular accident. Thus lymphocyte reactivity to BPM can be induced by brain damage associated with strokes, but could not be shown to be an immunological feature of multiple sclerosis.