From an immunological point of view, pregnancy is considered a very special condition. The immune system of the human body works by defending it from the possible attack of foreign substances. Inside a pregnant woman's body, the fetus contains half of the genetic material from the father. Surprisingly, this material is not rejected by the mother's immune system because it has adapted to become more tolerant.
Multiple Sclerosis During Pregnancy
During the third trimester of pregnancy, symptoms such as relapses decrease by 70%. Aside from this, other autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, temporarily while a woman is pregnant. The reason behind this is still unknown, so researchers are trying to discover the mechanism that helps reduce the symptoms during pregnancy and use this in developing treatment strategies for similar conditions.
A sub-study of the GraMS (Pregnancy and MS) study was conducted in collaboration between Linköping University, the Karolinska University Hospital in Solna, Linköping University Hospital, Länssjukhuset Ryhov in Jönköping, and Region Kalmar. The study investigates the benefits of natural changes in the mother's immune system during pregnancy.
The scientists focused their study on T cells, which play a critical role in the immune system. A comparison was made between 11 women with multiple sclerosis and seven healthy women. Their blood samples were taken before, during, and after getting pregnant.
In investigating the immune cells, the genes involved in the T cells at different stages of pregnancy are identified. A study was also done on the changes in the regulation of genes. Particular focus is also given to a regulation mechanism known as DNA methylation.
According to team member Sandra Hellberg from the Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences at Linköping University, they could not find the difference between healthy women and women with multiple sclerosis during their pregnancy. This means that the immune system of a pregnant woman carrying the disease is roughly the same as that of a healthy pregnant woman.
The researchers also found networks of interacting genes affected during the pregnancy stage. It was shown that these genes are connected to the disease and the crucial immunity processes.
The most significant changes in the T cells occur in the third trimester of pregnancy, where women affected with multiple sclerosis show the most improvement. The changes get reversed at a point in pregnancy when disease activity temporarily increases. Researchers believe that pregnant women get better against this disease due to the temporary dampening of the immune response.
What is Multiple Sclerosis?
Multiple sclerosis is a condition affecting a person's brain and spinal cord, causing problems in balance, leg movement, and sensation. Although this lifelong disease is occasionally mild, it can also lead to serious disability.
In this autoimmune disorder, the nerve function is obstructed because the immune system attacks the fat that acts as an insulating cover around the nerve fibers. The nerves suffer from inflammation and eventually get damaged. Despite effective treatment options against multiple sclerosis, most patients worsen and deteriorate over time.
It is still unclear why the immune system acts this way. However, most researchers believe that multiple sclerosis's causes could be genetic and environmental factors.
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