POLYMORPHISM OF THE TUMOUR NECROSIS FACTOR BETA GENE IN MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS AND RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS

Abstract

We evaluated the TNF-beta gene polymorphism in two HLA-associated autoimmune diseases, multiple sclerosis (MS) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The TNF-beta allele and genotype frequencies were not significantly different in the patient populations, compared to controls. An increased frequency of the TNF-beta*2 allele was observed in HLA-DR2+ vs. HLA-DR2- MS patients. No such association was seen in HLA-DR4+ RA patients.