Apolipoprotein E (APOE) phenotype and APOE concentrations in multiple sclerosis and acute herpes zoster

Objectives - Then are three major isoforms of apolipoprotein E (apoE), name ly aFoE2, apoE3, and apoE4, that are products of three alleles (epsilon(2), epsilon(3),epsilon(4)) at a single gene locus on chromosome 19. It is well known that the presence of apoE4 increases the risk for the development of Alzheimer's disease and atherosclerosis. The aim of the study was to examin e if apoE polymorphism or apoE levels contribute to the severity of the dis ease in patients with multiple sclerosis or the outcome of nerve damage in patients with herpes tester infection. Material and methods We examined apo E phenotype of 105 MS patients and 41 patients with herpes zoster. We also measured serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of apoE from 93 patient s with definite MS using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay. Results - There were no differences in apoE allele Frequencies in MS or herpes tester pati ents compared to the allele frequencies of controls. The levels of serum or CSF apoE did not differ from those of age-matched controls, nor did they c orrelate with the disease activity. Conclusion - We conclude that apoE does not contribute to the activity of MS or the outcome of herpes tester.