Lindsey Shapiro, PhD,  science writer—

Greater self-reported physical disability within the first years of being diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) is associated with a higher likelihood of transitioning to a progressive form of the disease. The finding comes from a recent analysis of patient-reported data from the U.K. MS Register. Scientists believe the…

An anti-inflammatory diet combined with synbiotic supplements eased fatigue, pain, sexual dysfunction, and bladder and bowel problems in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in a small clinical trial. Synbiotics contain probiotics, healthy bacteria for the gut, and prebiotics, or plant fibers that feed probiotics and help…

An energy management education program combined with high-intensity exercise during a three-week inpatient rehabilitation program didn’t lead to quality of life gains for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients with fatigue over usual care, but it did offer some benefit. In the months after the program, better cardiorespiratory fitness, gains in…

A course of neuromuscular electrical stimulation using Neufit‘s neuro-bio-electric stimulator — a device dubbed Neubie — alongside physical therapy (PT) led to improvements in strength and range of motion for seven people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a case series. Use of the Neubie device and PT…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Tyruko (natalizumab-sztn) as the first biosimilar of Tysabri to treat adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The decision also marks the first approval of any biosimilar for MS in the country, according to the regulatory agency.

ASH41020, an investigational therapy from Ashvattha Therapeutics, significantly reduced disease severity and exhibited immunomodulatory properties in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a recent presentation. Evidence indicated the therapy works by shifting the balance of immune cells called macrophages toward a less inflammatory and more…

Noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) may offer promise for treating spasticity in multiple sclerosis (MS), but more work is needed to identify the best approach to use for patients, according to a new review study. The studies under review generally indicated that a type of brain stimulation called repetitive…

Older age and greater physical disability when starting a disease-modifying therapy (DMT) were linked to worse cognitive function for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients, but cognition remained relatively stable over the next several years, according to a Swedish study. Due to the high rates of DMT switches and…

Delivering an antibody against the Nogo-A protein to a specific region of the nose called the olfactory mucosa improved motor function and preserved myelin in the spinal cord of a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a recent study. This intranasal mode of delivery enabled significant concentrations…

A lab-engineered probiotic, composed of live bacteria that colonize the gut, was able to ease signs of disease in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to recent research. After discovering that a metabolite called lactate could activate immune signaling pathways that help to curb autoimmunity, scientists specifically…

Researchers have developed a vaccine against the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) — a leading environmental risk factor for multiple sclerosis (MS) — that induced durable immune responses in mice. If it’s moved to the clinic, the vaccine could help prevent infections that drive MS and certain cancers, according to…

More daily physical activity, better physical condition, and lower disability were all associated with less fatigue for people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to a clinical trial in Finland. “The findings are interesting and support previous studies very well,” Marko Luostarinen, a doctoral researcher at the University of…

Treatment with ibudilast — an anti-inflammatory being developed to treat people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) — significantly preserved tissue integrity in a brain region called the thalamus in patients in a clinical trial, according to new analyses from SPRINT-MS. While the therapy appeared to exert these…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has agreed to review Viatris and Mapi Pharma‘s application seeking approval of GA Depot for the treatment of relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The medication is a long-acting formulation of glatiramer acetate, the active ingredient in the approved…

For the first time, multiple sclerosis (MS) therapies have been added to the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Model Lists of Essential Medicines (EML), which names those regarded as meeting the most important needs of healthcare systems worldwide. Glatiramer acetate (sold as Copaxone with generics available), Mavenclad (cladribine)…

Dawn Health, a Danish digital health company, has developed a smartphone app to support and empower people living with multiple sclerosis (MS) as they navigate their chronic disease care. Launched this week in Germany, the free Ekiva-MS app is designed to help patients better track their symptoms…

The risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) was similar between first- and second-degree family members of people with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS) and primary progressive MS (PPMS). The findings, which were consistent with previous studies suggesting that genetics and environment are relatively equal contributors to disease risk, also…

What a person eats in childhood can influence their future risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) and its clinical course, according to a recent Dutch study. A poor diet with more fast food, snacks, and candy as a child tended to be associated with a higher risk of developing…

The presence of spinal cord lesions — alone or with brain lesions — on MRI scans was associated with a higher risk of clinical relapse for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients over those with just brain lesions, according to a recent study. Spinal and brain lesions together were also predictive…

INmune Bio‘s experimental therapy XPro1595 may promote myelin restoration through the activation of two types of nervous system support cells, according to new data that may lead to novel treatment strategies for multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurodegenerative disorders. The findings highlight the activation of microglia, key…

Tysabri (natalizumab) is better than five other disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) at reducing relapses and preventing disability worsening in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to the findings of a novel simulated clinical trial that directly compared the six treatments. The analysis used mathematical modeling to emulate a clinical trial…

Adding optic nerve damage — reflected by a thinning of the nerve layer in the eye’s retina — to the existing diagnostic criteria for multiple sclerosis (MS) was found to enhance diagnostic accuracy among people who had a single, MS-like event, according to a new study. The study “demonstrated…

Women with multiple sclerosis (MS) are three times more likely to face problems with sexual intimacy than are their healthy counterparts, according to a recent meta-analysis. About 61% of women with MS were estimated to have some degree of sexual dysfunction, with the most common being low…

Nerve cells coated with myelin — the fatty substance that’s lost in multiple sclerosis (MS) — may be more vulnerable to degeneration in an inflammatory environment than cells lacking myelin, researchers working in MS patient tissues and mouse models report. The scientists believe the phenomenon arises when certain…

Researchers have developed computer algorithms that may be able to predict certain aspects of cognitive change in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. The prediction models, constructed using data from an electronic, self-administered test of information processing speed given MS patients, might accurately identify those likely to experience cognitive worsening over…

Diet was found to significantly influence the severity of multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms among patients living in Denmark in a new real-world study. A diet rich in plant-based products was generally associated with a lower symptom burden than one high in red and processed meats. The same was true…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) should generally follow a regular vaccination schedule similar to their healthy peers, with certain adjustments made if they’re on particular disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), according to a group of experts in Europe who devised a set of more than 50 evidence-based guidelines for the…

Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) — given by infusion — may work better than certain oral treatments to prevent relapses and disability worsening in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who transition from Tysabri (natalizumab), a new study found. Individuals who switched to Ocrevus also were more likely to stay…

Reductions in microglial activation have been observed in the brains of five of six patients with nonactive secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) who received treatment with Tiziana Life Science’s foralumab nasal spray. Microglia, resident immune cells in the brain, are believed to play a role in driving inflammation…

Physical disability, not whether patients are depressed, when they’re diagnosed with multiple sclerosis significantly influences their future disability progression, according to a recent U.K. registry study. Although patients who were depressed at the time of their diagnosis were more likely to accumulate significant disability and require an aid to…