Steve Bryson, PhD, science writer —

In a nationwide survey of cannabis-based therapy use among Americans with multiple sclerosis (MS), almost half of respondents endorsed such products, primarily for nerve-based pain and sleep disturbances, and the perceived benefits for sleep and pain were highly correlated.  The reported…

Rituximab, an investigational B-cell depletion therapy that target CD20 to treat people with multiple sclerosis (MS), has significant effects on the characteristics of B-cells that return after treatment is stopped, with cells being less mature yet more activated toward a pro-inflammatory state, a study showed. Treatment also…

Alterations in gut bacteria and bacterial metabolism were found in Japanese people at different stages of multiple sclerosis (MS) compared to healthy controls, a study reports. Reduced fatty acid synthesis in gut bacteria found in those with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS)…

A comparison of immune cells isolated from identical twins — in which only one of each pair was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) — identified a population of immune-regulating T-cells present in those with asymptomatic brain inflammation, a study has found. …

Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) eliminated the immunity, acquired through vaccination, to the varicella-zoster virus — the virus that causes chickenpox and shingles — in a man with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a case study reported. …

A protein known as Gsta4 is critical in the growth and activity of oligodendrocytes, a special type of brain cell that generates the myelin sheath that is damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS), a study shows. The overproduction of Gsta4 in…

Inflammation drives the loss of brain volume and thinning of the eye’s retina in the first five years of a multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis, an imaging study demonstrates.  The findings support a therapeutic strategy of halting inflammatory activity during this initial period. …

For the first time, scientists have shown that a protein known as CD36 on the surface of some immune cells is crucial for clearing myelin debris and suppressing nerve cell inflammation in disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new…

Cigarette smoking and an Epstein–Barr virus infection together represent a significant risk factor for multiple sclerosis (MS), suggesting that at least one path to this disease involves two factors working synergistically, a study reports. …

The pro-inflammatory signaling protein interleukin (IL)-17A, which is associated with nerve damage in multiple sclerosis (MS), also has an opposing, and crucial, anti-inflammatory role in cells, a study reports.  These findings may explain why therapies that lower IL-17A levels have failed…

A variant of the HLA-DPB1 gene — called HLA-DPB1*04 — appears to protect people from developing multiple sclerosis (MS) either in childhood or as adults, a study from Greece suggests.

A multimedia smartphone application designed to precisely inform about exercise and track physical activity led primary or secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) patients to be more active — but no more than a comparison patient group given only a…

Comorbidities such as anxiety and depression are associated with a significantly increased risk of relapse in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a clinical trial analysis has found.  Anxiety and abnormal blood lipids (fats) also increased the risk of any RRMS disease activity.  Based on those findings, researchers…

Cognitive problems are common in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) but inadequately addressed by disease-modifying therapies, while cognitive rehabilitation and exercise training programs can be effective, a review study reported.  Research studies of exercise programs need to include larger groups of patients with demonstrated cognitive difficulties, however, and more pharmacological…

After repeated exposure to a fragment of the myelin protein — the target of autoimmune attack in multiple sclerosis (MS) — immune cells in mice were reprogrammed to be tolerant to myelin, suppressing the immune response associated with the disease, a study revealed.  Researchers showed that in these…

People in the United Kingdom (U.K.) with multiple sclerosis (MS) have an increased risk of vascular disease affecting the heart and brain that is not accounted for by traditional disease risk factors, a large, population-based study reports.  The study, “Evaluating the Risk of Macrovascular Events and…

Altered levels of molecules important for cell regulation — called microRNAs — have been found in specific immune cells isolated from the blood of people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a study reveals. These immune cells, called monocytes, transform into macrophage cells,…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given final approval to Banner Life Sciences’ Bafiertam (monomethyl fumarate), a bioequivalent alternative to Biogen’s Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) to treat people with relapsing…

Scientists have identified a link between systemic inflammation and fat (lipid) metabolism that may underlie the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The study with that finding, “Lipoprotein profiling in early…

People in Japan with lesions in the cerebral cortex due to multiple sclerosis (MS) were found to have greater cognitive problems, or difficulties thinking, than those without lesions in this area of mostly gray matter that surrounds the brain, a study reports.  Lesions confined to the…

Immune cells from patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) respond differently to Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) based on age, gender, and serum blood glucose levels, a study found.  The results suggest these patient-specific factors can modulate the response of immune cells, and should be…

Treating people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) for one year with the immune-modulating therapy Gilenya (fingolimod) reduced the numbers of antibody-producing B-cells and of T helper cells, a study finds.  While the…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who self-identify black African or Latin American have a higher number of disease-associated antibody-secreting cells in their blood compared to those who identify as Caucasian, a U.S. study reports.  This difference may account for disparities related to ethnicity in MS…

A risk of multiple sclerosis rises in people with specific variations in a protein, called the vitamin D receptor, that affects how this vitamin works and is metabolized in the body, a study drawn from a meta-analysis reports. Its researchers suggest these variations, or changes…

A DNA analysis to identify changes in the gut microbiome in people newly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis — who have yet to begin using disease-modifying therapies — showed that all, regardless of ethnic background, have an abundance of the bacteria group Clostridia compared to people…

Stopping the migration of immune B-cells through the blood-brain barrier by blocking ALCAM, a molecule linked to the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), lessened disease severity in an MS mouse model, a new study shows. Details of the discovery were reported…

Exposure to UV-B light prevented multiple sclerosis (MS)-like symptoms in a mouse model regardless of the presence of vitamin D or the vitamin D receptor, a new study discovered.  The study, “UV light suppression of EAE (a mouse…

Depleting microbes in the gut of mice led to an altered fear response, changes in gene expression in brain immune cells and changes in brain chemistry — returning to a more normal state after their gut microbes were restored, but only if done early in life, a study…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) experts discuss disease causes and current treatment options in a new video series released by the multimedia and peer-reviewed science journal, The American Journal of Managed Care (AJMC).  The free and online video series is part…

Relationships between multiple sclerosis patients and their intimate partners were enhanced when the couple worked together to make lifestyle changes, and to develop skills to improve communication, a study shows.