News

An analysis of data covering nearly 200 people with multiple sclerosis (MS) found no association between dairy or gluten consumption and MS disease activity. While some specific diets for MS tend to restrict gluten and/or dairy, this study found that people who ate these dietary products were as…

Sudo Biosciences has raised $116 million in a Series B financing to support the clinical development of two inhibitors of the TYK2 enzyme for treating neurological conditions like multiple sclerosis (MS) and skin-related diseases. One of the TYK2 inhibitors, given orally, is designed to efficiently reach the brain…

Throughout 2023, Multiple Sclerosis News Today brought consistent coverage to our readers of the latest scientific research, developments in treatment, and clinical trials for multiple sclerosis (MS). Here is a list of the top 10 most-read stories we published last year, along with a brief description. We look…

The rate of brain atrophy, or shrinkage, and changes in brain lesion volume in the first years of treatment with Rebif (interferon beta-1a) may help predict which patients with early multiple sclerosis (MS) will receive a clinically definite diagnosis, a study suggests. The brain radiologic measures may also…

Sending SMS text messages to people with multiple sclerosis (MS) — with tips for fatigue self-management and to regularly check in on them — may be a feasible, acceptable, and engaging tool to help these patients manage disease-related fatigue, according to a pilot study. The findings also showed some…

Remote coaching sessions to support the mental and emotional health of informal multiple sclerosis (MS) caregivers, coupled with online information, showed significant benefits after four months, according to a pilot study. These coaching sessions — known as psychoeducation — focused on information, support, and strategies for caring and planning…

The European Commission (EC) has withdrawn its marketing authorizations for generic versions of Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate), an oral therapy approved in Europe for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). According to Biogen, which developed and markets the brand-name medication, the decision ensures Biogen will have full data and marketing protection…

Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) did not significantly reduce the number or volume of inflammatory lesions in the meninges in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a recent pilot study. While inflammation in the meninges, the protective membranes that surround the brain and spinal cord, is thought to be driven…

Tiziana Life Sciences has dosed the first patient in a Phase 2a clinical trial testing its foralumab nasal spray in people with nonactive secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS). The trial will include about 54 participants, enrolled across six clinical sites. Patients will be randomly assigned to receive one of two…

DeepSTI, a new artificial intelligence or AI-assisted MRI algorithm, can generate high-resolution, 3D images of the brain from only one head orientation. This new technology may allow clinicians to use fewer scans to visualize changes in the brain caused by neurological diseases, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), a study…

A six-month telehealth program designed to help participants change their dietary and lifestyle habits resulted in an increased level of physical activity and clinically relevant weight loss for most obese people with multiple sclerosis (MS) who took part, a clinical trial found. In fact, about 2 in 3 of…

The risk of falling among people with multiple sclerosis (MS) seems to be associated with a combination of personal, environmental, and activity-related factors, according to a large U.S. survey. Personal factors included poor balance, muscle weakness, and fatigue. Surface conditions and distraction made up environmental factors, while work-related factors…

A 20-week talk therapy program led to significant reductions in fatigue for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) — benefits that were sustained to the end of the year-long trial regardless of whether patients participated in additional booster sessions. Such sessions were offered two and four months after the end…

Fewer men than women are diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in China — as elsewhere — but more male patients have faster MS disability progression and higher death rates, a study found. Over the next 25 years, the burden of MS is expected to persist in China, the researchers…

MediciNova announced the approval of a European patent covering the use of ibudilast (MN-166) in combination with interferon-beta medications to treat progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) — primary progressive MS (PPMS) and secondary progressive MS (SPMS) — in patients previously using an interferon-beta.

More than one-third of neurologists in the U.S. believe Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitors could be of pivotal significance as a future treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to findings of a recent Spherix Global Insights’ survey. “Through Spherix’s quarterly RealTime Dynamix market tracker, neurologists…

Natural killer (NK) cells, a type of immune cell, are critical for preventing an immune response against an infecting virus from triggering multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study shows. “Our study demonstrates that the main protective factors against MS are distinct cytotoxic [cell-killing] NK cell responses,” the researchers wrote…

Taking a ginger supplement eased constipation, nausea, bloating, and abdominal pain in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who took part in a small clinical trial in Iran. The findings add to previous trial data that indicated the supplement was associated with less disability and improved quality of…

The molecular process that brings vitamin B12 into the brain can also transport Gilenya (fingolimod), an approved treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study. The finding “supports creating brain-targeted B12 formulations” for MS, said Jerold Chun, MD, PhD, co-author of the study at Sanford Burnham…

Immune responses against an ancient viral protein called pHERV-W that’s encoded in the human genome are higher in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patients with active disease compared with those who are clinically stable, according to recent research. The findings offer further support for a link between multiple sclerosis…

A novel compound that can lessen toxic overactivation of nerve cells was found to significantly reduce disease activity and restore lost myelin in two mouse models of multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study reports. Researchers say the compound, ZCAN262, may be a potential new treatment for MS should future…

Enrollment is nearly complete in a clinical trial of the Scone neuromodulation device in treating neurogenic, or overactive, bladder due to multiple sclerosis (MS), stroke, or spinal cord injury, SpineX, its developer, announced. Currently, 95 adult patients (more than 80% of planned total), ages 18 to…

Vanda Pharmaceuticals has acquired the U.S. and Canadian rights to Ponvory (ponesimod), an oral therapy approved for relapsing types of MS, in a new deal with Actelion Pharmaceuticals. Under the terms of the agreement, Vanda paid $100 million to Actelion (now part of Janssen), the therapy’s original developer. While…

The European Union (EU) is providing 7.1 million euros (about $7.6 million) over five years to a global interdisciplinary consortium that seeks to identify the causes of multiple sclerosis (MS) — with a particular focus on viruses — and find new treatments for the disease. The “BEHIND MS”…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has placed a partial hold on Genentech’s ongoing Phase 3 clinical trials testing fenebrutinib for the treatment of relapsing and primary progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The decision was based on two cases of patients who experienced elevations in their…

Higher blood levels of macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), a molecule involved in inflammation, may predict a faster rate of brain shrinkage, or atrophy, in people with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS). That’s according to a new analysis of data from the SPRINT-MS Phase 2 trial (NCT01982942) that…

Elderly adults with multiple sclerosis (MS) who adhere more to a Mediterranean diet tend to have less severe disability and fewer mental health, sleep, and cognitive problems, according to a new study. “This study has provided evidence that adopting [a Mediterranean diet] at higher levels was associated with lower…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) are more likely to experience depression, sexual dysfunction, constipation, inflammation of the bladder, and urinary tract infection in the five years leading up to their diagnosis than those without the disease, a study found. These findings parallel growing evidence that there’s a prodromal phase, in…

Treatment with Mavenclad (cladribine) over two years significantly improved physical and mental health aspects of quality of life in people with highly active relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a final analysis of data from the Phase 4 CLARIFY-MS study. Mavenclad is an oral medication approved for people with…

The Phase 3 EVOLUTION clinical trials have failed to demonstrate that evobrutinib is more effective than the approved medication Aubagio (teriflunomide) at preventing disease flares in people with relapsing types of multiple sclerosis (MS). The findings, which were shared by the drug’s developer Merck KGaA (known…