SPORADIC ALS MND - A GLOBAL NEURODEGENERATION WITH RETROVIRAL INVOLVEMENT/

Sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis may be an aetiologically hetero genous disease. We confirmed elevated circulating IgG immune complexes , and altered IgG seroreactivities against human retroviral antigens ( HIV-2 and HTLV immunoblots) in overlapping subgroups of patients. Toge ther with preliminary findings of a positive polymerase chain reactivi ty for human T-lymphotropic virus (HTLV.tax/rex) in blood leukocytes o f 5 out of 14 sALS patients, we interpret this as evidence for a retro viral involvement in this relentlessly progressive, often asymmetrical ly spreading neurodegeneration. The possibility of a secondary phenome non seems unlikely, yet cannot be completely ruled out.