No association between identified multiple sclerosis non-MHC risk loci and neuromyelitis optica

Neuromyelitis optica（NMO） and multiple sclerosis（ M S） a r e b o t h a u t o i m m u n e i n f l a m m a t o r y a n d demyelinating disorders of the central nervous system. Recently, more than 50 MS-susceptibility single-nucleotide polymorphisms（SNPs） have been detected outside the major histocompatibility complex（MHC） region. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the association of these identified non-MHC MS risk loci with Chinese patients with NMO. Thirtyfive non-MHC SNPs were selected and genotyped by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization timeof-fl ight mass spectrometry（MALDI-TOF MS） in 110 NMO patients and 332 controls from southeastern China. Among the 35 SNPs, only one, rs1800693 in the TNFRSF1 A locus, was nominally associated with NMO（P = 0.045, OR = 1.550, 95% CI = 1.007 – 2.384）. However, none of the 35 SNPs was associated with NMO after Bonferroni correction. Our results showed no association between these identified non-MHC MS risk loci and NMO, suggesting there are genetic differences in the etiology of NMO and MS.