Oligodendrocyte-specific protein is encephalitogenic in rhesus macaques and induces specific demyelination of the optic nerve.

Oligodendrocyte-specific protein (OSP) is a candidate autoantigen in the development of multiple sclerosis (MS). We evaluated the potential of OSP to induce EAE in rhesus monkeys, an out bred animal model for MS that is immunologically close to humans. Since OSP is a four-membrane spanning protein with highly hydrophobic regions, we synthesized recombinant proteins encompassing only the hydrophilic regions of human OSP (soluble (s)hOSP). Immunization with shOSP proteins induced clinical signs and histological features of optic neuritis in four out of ten rhesus monkeys. The development of clinical disease was associated with the presence of a strong cellular proliferative response to the immunizing shOSP protein. Analysis of the cellular responses in combination with neuropathological observations also indicates an important role for neutrophils in the disease process. Interestingly, all immunized monkeys developed antibody responses to OSP peptide 103-123, a B cell epitope previously identified in MS patients. These responses did not correlate with the development of clinical disease, but may have relevance as a biomarker for immunoreactivity towards OSP in myelin disorders. Our data demonstrate that in rhesus monkeys immune responses directed at OSP are encephalitogenic, leading to inflammatory responses throughout the central nervous system and to selective demyelination of the optic nerve.