Foodborne toxin could trigger MS, studies suggest

Health

JoNel Aleccia NBC News

18 hours ago

CDC / CDC

Toxins produced by Clostridium perfringens, a common cause of foodborne illness, could be a potential trigger for multiple sclerosis, scientists say.

Add another clue to the mystery of multiple sclerosis: Scientists say a poison produced by common foodborne germs could be a trigger for the debilitating autoimmune disorder that affects 400,000 Americans.

Researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York have discovered that a toxin made by the bacterium Clostridium perfringens responsible for a million cases of food poisoning in the U.S. each year appears to attack the cells associated with MS.

What weve shown is the toxins target the cells that are targeted in MS, said Jennifer Linden, a Weill Cornell researcher whos presenting findings Tuesday at a meeting of the American Society for Microbiology.

Her research also showed that about 13 percent of a small sample of food products harbored C. perfringens bacteria, and nearly 3 percent were positive for the toxin linked to MS.

Its too early to suggest that MS is caused by food poisoning, but it does raise the possibility that the C. perfringens bacteria could be involved in activating the disease, said Bruce F. Bebo, associate vice president of discovery research for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

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Foodborne toxin could trigger MS, studies suggest