Narcolepsy Linked to Immune System

Narcolepsy is a rare and unpleasant condition that affects around 1 in 2,000 people. Sufferers experience extreme daytime sleepiness and can suddenly fall asleep without warning. There's no cure and until now even the cause of the disease has been a mystery.

Now new research has shed at least a little light on the subject and points to a problem with the immune system. More specifically: "Narcolepsy is strongly associated with the T-cell receptor alpha locus".

The research, published in Nature Genetics, is said to provide strong evidence for a link between narcolepsy and a genetic fault involving the immune system. Lead researcher Dr Emmanuel Mignot said:

Narcolepsy is probably the result of a series of unfortunate events, starting with genetic predisposition, involvement of an environmental trigger such as an infection, then T-cell activation, then effects on many other arms of the immune system."

The new findings might one day lead to genetic screening for narcolepsy and possibly the development of new treatments.