Multiple Sclerosis News

Novartis has announced that it will present new analyses and redefined treatment goals for multiple sclerosis (MS) at the 2014 Joint Americas and European Committees for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis Meeting (ACTRIMS-ECTRIMS), which is taking place in Boston, between September 10 and 13. Novartis claims to have…

In-vitro laboratory experiments using stem cells have long-since been the subject of debate between scientists and naturalists, but when it comes to developing effective methods to grow human cells and tissue for use in a potentially life-saving procedure or restoration of bodily function, researchers are increasingly more confident that…

Yoga improves the quality of life of patients who suffer from multiple sclerosis, as recently concluded during a study of its benefits in increasing mental health, concentration, bladder control, walking, balance, motor coordination and vision, as well as in decreasing pain and fatigue. Researchers from Rutgers’ School of Health Related Professions…

As researchers continue to develop a clearer understanding of the underlying causes of multiple sclerosis (MS), it is becoming increasingly apparent that the future of treating the disease is likely to center on neural protection and a reversal of the demyelination process that strips away the critical insulation…

A diet high in salt can worsen multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms, as well as increase the risks of neurological deterioration, according to an observational study led by Mauricio Farez, from the Universidad del Salvador in Buenos Aires, Argentina and recently published at the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, entitled, “Sodium intake is associated with…

Recent research continues to suggest that MS is on the rise is countries that in the past posted small diagnoses of the disease. The latest study reveals that Multiple Sclerosis affects more second-generation Kuwaiti migrants than previously thought, according to an article published in BME Neurology. The findings…

Low dose naltrexone (LDN) may be on its way to becoming a new therapeutic agent for multiple sclerosis. Evidence for its efficacy in attenuating multiple sclerosis symptoms is scarce, but results of a phase 3 clinical trial, “A Randomized Placebo-Controlled, Crossover-Design Study of the Effects…

New research published online ahead of print in the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) journal Radiology on August 26, reports that a gaming accessory known as a balance board for the Nintendo Wii console may assist people with multiple sclerosis (MS) in reducing the risk of falling accidentally. Balance…

For many people such as attorney Richard Nenno from Delaware, joining a fundraising sport event stems from a highly personal mission. Despite being blind, Nenno plans to join next month’s Bike to the Bay event for multiple sclerosis (MS), and he will be doing it in memory of his…

The Pharmaceutical Management Agency (PHARMAC) is considering a funding proposal that includes five treatments for multiple sclerosis (MS), namely two key MS drugs,  Biogen‘s Tysabri and Novartis‘ Gilenya, that are not currently funded. PHARMAC is the New Zealand Crown agency that decides, on behalf of District…

According to new research published in European Journal of Neurology, susceptibility to multiple sclerosis may be predicted by looking at individuals’ protein profiles, otherwise known as proteomes. A team led by principal investigator Dr. S. Jacobson at the National Institutes of Health and Dr. M. T.

Fingolimod is a disease modifying therapy (DMT) used to treat relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients as well as patients who continue to present with relapses despite treatment with beta interferon drugs, and is the first oral medication to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug…

Biogen Idec, a biotechnology company focused on developing innovative therapies for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, hematologic conditions and autoimmune disorders, has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved PLEGRIDYTM (peginterferon beta-1a), a new treatment for people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis…

New Zealand and  Australian-based biotechnology company Innate Immunotherapeutics recently announced that it has begun to recruit patients with Secondary Progressive Multiple Sclerosis (SPMS) for its phase 2B trial of its experimental therapy MIS416. The study, which will be administered by the Western Australian…

Welsh health minister Mark Drakeford has announced that Wales has become the first UK country to authorize a cannabis-based medicine under its National Health Service. Sativex, a proprietary oral spray cannabinoid medicine that has been licensed in the UK to treat muscle spasms and stiffness in people…

While the majority of scientists dedicated to multiple sclerosis research focus on genetic regulators of conditions such as autoimmunity, demyelination, inflammation, and neurodegeneration, a team from the University of Lubeck in Germany, led by Saleh M. Ibrahim, MD, PhD, focuses on genetic regulators of conduction velocity. The team is uncovering…

Just yesterday, the President of the Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ACTRIMS), Suhayl Dhib-Jalbut, publicly announced the details of this year’s MSBoston2014 conference, in collaboration with the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS). According to Dhib-Jalbut — who is also the…

Regulus Therapeutics, Inc., a San Diego-based biopharmaceutical company that specializes in the research and development of experimental drugs that target microRNAs, recently announced that it has signed a contract to work together with Biogen Idec. Under Regulus’ microMarkers™ project, the two companies will be collaborating on research efforts to…

Researchers have recently discovered that the fatigue that patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) experience is not the same kind of fatigue that healthy people feel from time to time, nor is it caused by the same factors. The National Multiple Sclerosis Society reports that around 80% of people who suffer from…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who are prescribed Tysabri have an increased risk to develop the rare, often fatal infection of the brain called progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), according to a recent study. PML is caused by a common virus that infects blood cells and can be mobilized by popular RRMS drug Natalizumab,…

A new stem cell transplant therapy may offer patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) an alternative treatment option. According to a recent report on KCBD by Kasie Davis, researchers are pointing to the success of an MS patient named Dan Tiel, who had been reduced to living in a wheelchair due to…

The common symptom of fatigue experienced by multiple sclerosis (MS) patients may be caused by regional damage in the brain, according to research conducted at the Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Italy and published in the journal Radiology. Scientists analyzed atrophies and lesions in the white matter and grey matter of 65…

According to a study published in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, HIV infection is correlated to a significantly lower risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS). The researchers analyzed a previous report by a team of Danish researchers whereby an HIV positive man with MS had his symptoms…

Findings of a number of scientific research articles, reviewed in a recent article from researchers at University of Bari and National Cancer Institute in Italy, describe a common response to injury in multiple sclerosis patients and animal models of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE). The response, known as…

Australian authorities are alerting Multiple Sclerosis patients to the risk of unproven stem cell treatments that are being performed both in the country and overseas, after the recent death of a woman in Russia undergoing a controversial treatment for the disease. The continued marketing campaigns to…

Synthetic Biologics, Inc., a biotechnology company developing novel drug candidates targeting specific pathogens that cause serious infections and diseases, announced that its latest data on Trimesta™, regarding cognitive and disability measures in women suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS), will be presented at the 2014 Joint Americas and European Committees…

Scientists at The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Research Institute have made encouraging advances in the development of a viable cell replacement therapy for multiple sclerosis using a patient’s own cells, known as induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Since multiple sclerosis is a chronic demyelinating disease of unknown…

The European Commission granted marketing authorization for the use of Plegridy, a drug developed by Biogen Idec as a treatment for adults with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), the most common form of multiple sclerosis (MS). The approval comes at a time when…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently notified Concert Pharmaceuticals that the company had fulfilled all necessary preclinical toxicological tests for the oral therapy CTP-354 for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, and spasticity. The authorization to administer repeated doses of the compound, in excess of 6 mg per day,…

For the approximately 15-20% of multiple sclerosis patients with acute optic neuritis (AON), lack of vitamin D may be partly responsible. A new study published in Neurology identified a link between vitamin D levels and AON severity. Individuals with higher vitamin D levels may experience less severe…