An examination of the association between 32 adrenergic receptor polymorphisms and multiple sclerosis

In multiple sclerosis (MS), beta-adrenergic receptor densities on peripheral blood mononuclear cells are enhanced, while the astrocytes present in plaques lack beta(2) adrenergic receptor (beta(2)AR) expression. This differentially altered expression suggests that beta(2)ARs may influence the pathogenesis of MS. In the present study, we investigated the association of polymorphisms of the beta(2)AR gene with the occurrence of MS. Our results showed no significant differences in the distribution of the polymorphisms between MS patients overall and control subjects. Furthermore, no association was observed between the presence of beta(2)AR gene polymorphisms and clinical characteristics, such as age at disease onset and disease severity. While a trend towards an increase of the Gly allele frequency in codon 16 was observed in the secondary-progressive MS, this result was not significantly different from that observed in relapsing-remitting MS patients or control subjects. Together, our findings suggest that the presence Of beta(2)AR gene polymorphisms may be inconclusive in the susceptibility to MS or in the clinical characteristics of Japanese patients with MS and, therefore, need further studies.