Multiple Sclerosis, Sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob Disease and Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy: Are they Autoimmune Diseases Evoked by Acinetobacter Microbes Showing Molecular Mimicry to Brain Antigens?

Abstract

Purpose and Design: Microbial agents showing molecular mimicry to self‐antigens have been reported to initiate an autoimmune pathology in several diseases, including Sydenham's chorea, rheumatic fever, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Cows affected by bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) have been shown to have antibodies to Acinetobacter species, microbes that are known to possess bacterial antigens showing molecular mimicry with brain antigens. In this study, the possibility that patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and sporadic Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease (sCJD) have elevated antibodies to bacterial and brain antigens was investigated.Materials and Methods: Serum samples from different groups of patients, including 53 with MS, 20 with RA, 20 with AS, two with sCJD, 18 with cerebrovascular accident (CVA) and 20 with viral encephalitis, as well as 29 healthy control subjects were tested using the enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method for the determination of antibodi...