Serum levels of apoptosis-related molecules in patients with multiple sclerosis and human T-lymphotropic virus type I-associated myelopathy

We evaluated the presence of soluble Fas (sFas), Fas ligand (sFasL), and Bc l-2 in the sera of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) or human T-lymphot ropic virus type I (HTLV-1)-associated myelopathy (HAM) using an enzyme-lin ked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Patients with MS in the active phase had h igher sFas and Bcl-2 levels than had controls (sFas, p < 0.005; Bcl-2, p < 0.05) or patients in the inactive phase (p < 0.05), In addition, significan tly increased serum levels of sFas were found in patients with HAM (p < 0.0 05). Interestingly, levels of sFasL in sera from patients with HAM and MS i n the active stage were higher than those from controls or from patients wi th MS in the inactive stage or from other inflammatory neurologic diseases (OIND), although this was not statistically significant. These results sugg est that serum sFas, sFasL, and Bcl-2 may play an important role in the pat hogenesis of MS and HAM.