Research to probe MS links to the Northern Isles

Volunteers wanted for project to check DNA to find vital gene clues

By Morag Lindsay

Published:

A new study aims to understand why Orkney and Shetland have some of the highest rates of multiple sclerosis in the world.

A research fellow in the human genetics unit at Edinburgh University, Jim Wilson, has been awarded £215,000 by the MS Society Scotland to lead the two-year project.

Scientists hope to establish if something in the DNA of natives of the Northern Isles makes them more susceptible to the disease.

On a visit to Shetland yesterday, he said: “Finding the genes will help to develop a better understanding of how the disease develops, which is the first stage to developing new treatments – something very much needed in MS.

“Science and technology have moved on so much since the last major study in the 1970s and people seem really willing to take part so I am very hopeful we will be able to discover something new.”

Mr Wilson and his team will be focusing on the role of the DR15 gene, which is involved in the immune system. Having this gene strongly increases a person’s chances of getting MS – particularly if inherited from both parents.

However, as you move north in Scotland, this gene becomes more and more common, so in Orkney and Shetland there are many people who have two copies yet, paradoxically, do not have MS.

More exciting for Mr Wilson, an Orcadian whose father hails from Shetland, is the prospect of finding a new gene entirely. He has been working on another project involving 2,000 islanders, which has isolated a previously undiscovered gene in gout sufferers.

diagnosis

A side-finding will be the first proper study since the 1970s of exactly how common MS is in the Northern Isles.

There are thought to be around 160 people with MS between the two island groups which, between them, have a population of around 43,000.

Anecdotal evidence suggests the rate is increasing but this could be due to more precise methods of diagnosis using brain scans which can pick up mild cases which might not have counted previously.

Mr Wilson also wants to explore how many people there with MS are natives of Orkney and Shetland – and how many have moved from elsewhere.

Researchers are collaborating with Dr Mark Vickers in the department of neurology at Aberdeen University, who will be looking at the role of the Epstein-Barr virus. In extreme cases, this is the virus which causes glandular fever but in most people it results in only a mild sore throat. Nine out of 10 people in the general population have had the virus but in MS patients the figure rises to 100%, suggesting it may be a trigger to getting the disease.

Taking all the strands of research together, the scientists hope to shed fresh light on the theory that MS is caused by a combination of risky genes and EBV, and perhaps other factors, such as living in the north.

Family doctors on the islands are being encouraged to forward letters to patients, inviting them to take part by giving a small blood sample and filling in a questionnaire.

People who have no symptoms or family history of MS will also be invited to participate so the research team can compare their details against those of MS patients.

To volunteer or find out more, phone project manager Kay Lindsay on 0131 651 1643, or e-mail orkney@ed.ac.uk