Purpose. To identify reliable predictor markers that indicate the possibility the development of a hereditary predisposition to MS based on the study of anamnestic, clinical, immunogenetic and neuroimaging features in practically healthy adult children born to parents with a sporadic form of this disease

Two groups of persons were examined: Primary group (practically healthy persons, born from sick parents) — 54 persons (27 men and 27 women) with an average age of 19.7 ± 2.0; observational group (persons born from healthy parents) — 20 persons (8 men and 12 women), with an average age of 20.5 ± 2.0). During the research the following points were studied: features of pregnancy and childbirth before the onset and against the background of MS in women who gave birth to healthy children; previous diseases (according to anamnesis), neurological status; peculiarities of immune status; prevalence of minor allele G (haplotype AG) in heterozygous individuals and prevalence major allele A (haplotype AA) in homozygous individuals; results of a neuroimaging study (MRI).

In the primary group, the majority of women before the onset of MS (68.5 ± 6.3 %) had healthy children through physiological childbirth (83.4 ± 5.1) %. Against the background of the disease neither relapses of MS nor other complications were detected in pregnant women. Diseases suffered by persons living with MS in their family anamnesis from the parents included frequent bacterial-viral infections (chicken pox, ARVI, chronic ENT pathology — and bronchopulmonary pathology), which were able to start and maintain autoimmune reactions as a result of hypersensibilization developed. According to immunological studies, some of the persons examined demonstrated signs of immune imbalance (deficiency of immunoregulatory cells CD4, CD8, liquid lymphocytosis, decrease in natural killer cells, and increase in lymphocytotoxic autoantibodies) which indicated the presence of an inflammatory process with an autoimmune component. Status studies revealed minimal neurological symptoms in a small number of individuals (those symptoms were not pathognomonic for MS and did not significantly affect quality of life. According to the MRI data, no “dormant” foci of demyelination were detected which indicates absence of a subclinical course of MS in the examined persons. According to data of genetic studies, a reliable predominance of the AA haplotype over the AG haplotype was revealed, which is associated with the development of MS.

Thus, the complex analysis of the received data gave an opportunity to distinguish “conditional” risk factors (high infectious index due to frequent bacterial-viral infections and, signs of immune imbalance) and anti-risk factors (absence of neurological symptoms, pathogenic for MS, absence of “dormant” foci of demyelination, according to MRI data, reliable prevalence of AA haplotype over the AG haplotype) which, taking into account the hereditary predisposition to MS, can contribute or hinder further possible development of the demyelinating process.