Identification of a gene that increases risk of MS via a pathway involving UV exposure

多发性硬化症（MS）是一种中枢神经系统的自身免疫性疾病，影响超过10 000名澳大利亚人。它是一种进行性衰弱性疾病，主要影响年轻人，目前的治疗方法昂贵，仅中度有效，并伴有显著的副作用。导致这种疾病的生物过程还没有得到很好的理解，有必要确定新的方法来治疗这种疾病或预防it.One与MS相关的已知因素是MS发病率的增加与凉爽的气候和减少阳光照射的显着关联。由孟席斯中心进行的一项研究最近提供的证据表明，增加儿童阳光照射与MS的风险降低显着相关。该项目旨在研究那些参与身体对阳光照射的反应的基因，因为我们提出，如果阳光照射影响MS的风险，那么这些基因可能与阳光照射相互作用，以改变MS的风险。

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an auto-immune disease of the central nervous system that affects over 10 000 Australians. It is a progressive debilitating disease that affects predominantly young adults and current therapies are expensive, only moderately effective and are associated with significant side effects. The biological processes leading to this disease are not well understood and there is a need to identify new ways of treating the disease or preventing it. One of the known factors associated with MS is the striking association of increased MS incidence with cooler climates and reduced sun exposure. A study conduced by the Menzies Centre has recently provided evidence that increased childhood sun exposure is significantly associated with reduced risk of MS. This project aims to study those genes involved in the body's response to sun exposure as we propose that if sun exposure influences risk of MS then those genes may interact with sun exposure to modify risk of MS.