Inês Martins, PhD,  science editor—

Evobrutinib, an experimental BTK inhibitor being developed for people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), continues to be well tolerated and is showing low relapse rates after four years of treatment. That’s according to new data spanning a Phase 2 trial (NCT02975349) that tested evobrutinib against…

Helius Medical Technologies has filed an application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) asking for de novo classification and clearance of its portable neuromodulation stimulator (PoNS) device for the treatment of walking deficits in multiple…

Therapeutics Solutions International has announced filing a new patent covering the memory protective effects of its natural nutritional supplement QuadraMune, as seen in an animal model of memory loss caused by inflammation. QuadraMune is a nutritional supplement, available in capsule form, made of four ingredients with known anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, and…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients have a greater risk of infections, particularly urinary and kidney infections, around the time of their diagnosis, compared with individuals without MS, a large Swedish population-based study found. Rates of serious and non-serious infections, as well as infections caused by bacteria, virus, and fungus, also…

A $41,000 fellowship from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) aims to advance research into how changes in brain connectivity are related to the cognitive deficits seen in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Individual Predoctoral Fellowship was granted to…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) spend a significantly greater number of work days each year on sick leave or disability pay than do the general population — including in the years before they are formally diagnosed, a Swedish study found. Though the number of missed work days rises in…

To speed research and work on more personalized treatments for serious diseases, Roche and its subsidiary Genentech announced a partnership with PicnicHealth to access its collection of real-world data. Eligible adults with MS in the United States are also being invited to join a multiyear study assembling such…

Generic formulations of dimethyl fumarate — currently sold as Tecfidera by Biogen — were given a green light to enter the U.S. market, after a federal court invalidated a patent protecting Tecfidera from generic competition as a multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment.  The ruling by the District Court for the…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who are obese experience faster degeneration in optic nerve tissue than do those of normal weight, an observational study found. Since optic nerve degeneration correlates with greater nerve loss in the brain, measuring changes in this tissue may be a feasible way to determine…

A new digital tool aims to help people with multiple sclerosis (MS) deal with the emotional burden of their diagnosis, guiding them to focus on what matters most in their lives rather than the pain of living with MS. The self-help tool, named ACT MySelf, was developed by…

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) approved a shorter infusion time for Ocrevus (ocrelizumab), an approved treatment for people with relapsing or primary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). The approval follows a positive recommendation from EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP),…

Atara Biotherapeutics‘ cell-based therapy ATA188 is safe and well-tolerated in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), and induces a sustained reduction in disability in a dose-dependent manner, findings from the first part of a Phase 1 clinical trial show. ATA188 had an…

Exposure to air pollutants, particularly to fine particle pollutants (2.5 micrometers or less in diameter), seems to increase a person’s risk of multiple sclerosis (MS), a study from northern Italy suggests. It found that people living in urban, more polluted areas have a 16% higher relative risk  of developing this…

Movements that are an act of “learning” motor tasks after lesions appear in the protective myelin sheath of neurons seem to induce both new and existing oligodendrocytes — the cells that make up myelin — to repair those lesions, a study in mice shows. Precisely timed rehabilitation programs and exercise may…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurological diseases have a significantly higher aluminum content in their brains than those with no known neurological impairment and no identifiable neurodegenerative disease, a recent study found. The research further supports a role of aluminum in the development of these brain conditions,…

Targeting the MOSPD2 protein may prevent immune cells known as monocytes from entering the central nervous system (CNS), which may significantly ease brain inflammation and myelin damage in multiple sclerosis (MS), a study in mice suggests. VBL Therapeutics, the company leading the study, has developed…

Supporting evidence that infection with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) could be one of the root causes of multiple sclerosis (MS), a recent study found all of its 901 early disease patients carry antibodies against this virus, meaning that all are or have been exposed to it. The study, “…

Neuroscientist Ian D. Duncan has been awarded the 2020 John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research for work that advanced understanding of how myelin, the protective sheath surrounding nerve cells, can be repaired in diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). “Professor Duncan has made a series of critical research advances…

People with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) being treated with Gilenya (fingolimod) for eight or more years show smaller increases in disability over 10 years than those using this treatment for a shorter time, a long-term follow-up study reports. Longer use of Gilenya also resulted in lesser disability progression,…

NurOwn, believed to have neuroprotective and repairing effects, may also be able to curb the damaging immune responses that contribute to multiple sclerosis (MS) progression, a recent study found. This newly identified potential may extend the benefits of this cell-based therapy, its researchers believe. The findings were to be presented…

To ensure the safety of its participants during the coronavirus pandemic, this year’s Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) Annual Meeting will be a free virtual conference on May 26–29. This meeting is considered the largest educational conference in North America for healthcare professionals working in multiple sclerosis…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who are obese experience a faster degeneration in their optic nerve tissue than those of normal weight, a study found. Since optic neuropathy correlates with greater nerve cell loss in the brain, tracking changes to the retina may be a feasible way to determine…

Using rituximab to prevent multiple sclerosis (MS) in people at risk or in patients still without motor symptoms, and continuing treatment as the disease develops, may be a promising way to avoid inflammation and myelin loss in the brain, a study in mice suggests. In an animal model of MS,…

A subset of monocytes (a type of immune cells) that can infiltrate the central nervous system and drive nerve cell damage in multiple sclerosis (MS) may be a better target for preventing disease progression than the cells of the immune system that are currently targeted with MS therapies,…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug status to combinations of VTS-Aspirin plus fumarate therapy using Vumerity (diroximel fumarate) or Bafiertam (monomethyl fumarate) for easing flush in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). In the U.S., orphan drug designation is given to…

With the development of a cell line that produces significant amounts of Immutep‘s treatment candidate, IMP761, the company is preparing to advance its antibody into clinical testing for autoimmune conditions, including multiple sclerosis (MS). Immutep also reports that is adapting its manufacturing operations to comply with…

A high genetic risk for multiple sclerosis (MS) is associated with structural alterations in white matter — brain regions composed mainly of nerve fibers — in childhood, findings from a large study show. Brain volume, however, was not affected by genetic risk in the more than 2,000 children whose…

A variant of the HLA-DRB1 gene — called HLA-DRB1*03 — appears to predispose people to developing multiple sclerosis (MS) in childhood, and to correlate with greater disease activity among those who do, a study in Greek patients suggests. The research also points to a protective role of one other variant of this…

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Atara Biotherapeutics has temporarily paused patient enrollment in the second and randomized part of its ongoing Phase 1 clinical trial investigating ATA188 in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). People treated in the first, open-label part of this trial, however,…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients have lower than usual levels of molecules called bile acids circulating in their blood, a  study found. These molecules, produced in the liver to aid fat absorption in the gut, also appear to block inflammation and nerve cell damage in the brain. Oral treatment with …