Voskuhl R R, Palaszynski K
Department of Neurology, University of California, Los Angeles 90095, USA.
Neuroscientist. 2001 Jun;7(3):258-70. doi: 10.1177/107385840100700310.
For decades, it has been known that females are more susceptible than males to multiple sclerosis (MS). It has also long been appreciated that during late pregnancy there is a decrease in MS disease activity. Interestingly, these two observations have also been made in an extensively used animal model for MS, experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in SJL mice. Female mice are more susceptible to disease than male mice, and there is an improvement in disease during late pregnancy. In this review, the role of sex hormones in each of these two observations is characterized in this EAE model using castration and exogenous hormone treatment strategies. The gender difference in EAE susceptibility is due primarily to a protective effect of testosterone in male mice. The decrease in disease severity during late pregnancy appears to be due at least in part to high levels of estriol, which characterize this time period.
几十年来，人们一直知道女性比男性更容易患多发性硬化症（MS）。长期以来人们也认识到，在妊娠后期，MS疾病活动会有所减少。有趣的是，在一种广泛使用的MS动物模型——SJL小鼠实验性自身免疫性脑脊髓炎（EAE）中，也观察到了这两点。雌性小鼠比雄性小鼠更易患该病，并且在妊娠后期疾病会有所改善。在这篇综述中，利用去势和外源激素治疗策略，在这个EAE模型中研究了性激素在这两种现象中的作用。EAE易感性的性别差异主要是由于睾酮对雄性小鼠具有保护作用。妊娠后期疾病严重程度的降低似乎至少部分归因于该时期高水平的雌三醇。
