Multiple sclerosis (MS) is referred to as an organ‐specific T‐cell‐mediated autoimmune disease of the central nervous system (CNS). Different genetic and environmental factors increase the risk of developing MS. In recent years, microchimerism (Mc) has been widely studied in autoimmune diseases, although the exact role of this phenomenon in human health is not known well. Microchimerism is the low level presence of DNA or cells from one individual into the tissue or circulation of another individual. In the current study, we evaluated the association of fetal microchimerism (FMc) with MS in Isfahan province. In this study, we enrolled 68 women in four groups. Two groups were MS patients with or without a pregnancy for a son, and the other two groups were MS‐negative patients with or without a pregnancy for a son. The presence of the male genome assessed and compared in these groups. Four millilitres of peripheral blood were collected from all subjects in the tube containing EDTA and DNA was extracted. Real‐time PCR assay was used for the DAZ (deleted in azoospermia) region Yq 11.23 as a marker for male microchimerism in all subjects. Our results showed that the percentage of DAZ (male genome)‐positive women was significantly higher in MS‐positive women given birth to a son in comparison with the other three groups. Our results also revealed no significant correlation between the percentage of DAZ‐positive women and Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score and age of onset in the patients’ group. For future studies, we suggest enrolling subjects who MS diagnosis occurred before and after pregnancy with a son. Comparing FMc in these two groups might provide a better understanding of the possible role of FMc in later development of MS.

中文翻译：

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伊斯法罕省多发性硬化女性外周血男性微嵌合体

多发性硬化症 (MS) 被称为器官特异性 T 细胞介导的中枢神经系统 (CNS) 自身免疫性疾病。不同的遗传和环境因素会增加患 MS 的风险。近年来，微嵌合体 (Mc) 已在自身免疫性疾病中得到广泛研究，尽管这种现象在人类健康中的确切作用尚不清楚。微嵌合现象是一个人的 DNA 或细胞进入另一个人的组织或循环的低水平存在。在目前的研究中，我们评估了伊斯法罕省胎儿微嵌合体 (FMc) 与 MS 的关联。在这项研究中，我们招募了四组 68 名女性。两组为怀或未怀儿子的MS患者，另两组为怀或未怀儿子的MS阴性患者。在这些组中评估和比较了男性基因组的存在。在含有 EDTA 的试管中收集所有受试者的 4 毫升外周血并提取 DNA。实时 PCR 检测用于 DAZ（在无精子症中删除）区域 Yq 11.23 作为所有受试者中男性微嵌合体的标记。我们的结果表明，与其他三组相比，生儿子的 MS 阳性女性中 DAZ（男性基因组）阳性女性的百分比显着更高。我们的结果还显示，DAZ 阳性女性的百分比与扩展残疾状态量表 (EDSS) 评分与患者组的发病年龄之间没有显着相关性。对于未来的研究，我们建议招募在与儿子怀孕之前和之后发生 MS 诊断的受试者。