News

Rituximab, which is sometimes used off-label for multiple sclerosis (MS), doubles the risk of hospital-treated infections, but may prevent worsening disability better than some approved disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), a Swedish study finds. Hospital-treated infections were significantly associated with a higher risk of relapse-independent disability worsening among relapsing-remitting…

Glial cells, which mostly support the function of nerve cells, play key roles in multiple sclerosis (MS) disease progression and development, according to a stem cell-based study. “Most research and therapeutic strategies have so far focused on blocking the overactive immune system, but how cells in the brain itself,…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) are about half as likely as those without the disease to have signs of the amyloid-beta plaques in the brain that are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study in the U.S. “Our findings imply that some component of the biology…

Obesity promotes molecular signatures associated with more inflammation and multiple sclerosis (MS) signaling pathways specifically in females, which may explain the link between obesity and a higher risk of MS in women. These are the findings of a new study analyzing data not only from obese and non-obese women…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the green light to Immpact Bio to conduct a Phase 1 clinical trial to test IMPT-514, its experimental cell therapy, in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). With the investigational new drug (IND) clearance by the FDA, Immpact Bio now…

Abata Therapeutics has received an investment from Bristol Myers Squibb to support the development of its experimental regulatory T-cell (Treg) therapies for severe autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, including progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). The new equity investment from the global biopharmaceutical company follows last week’s green light from…

A potential treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), arsenic trioxide (ATO) has been patented in the European Union based on findings in preclinical studies. Notice of an intent to grant patent EP18722530, titled “Method for treating relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis using arsenic trioxide,” was given by the European Patent…

A Phase 1 clinical trial that’s testing IMP761, an experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) and other autoimmune conditions, has dosed its first healthy participant, the therapy’s developer has announced. Immutep received regulatory clearance to start the first-in-human trial of IMP761 in the Netherlands about a…

A grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is supporting a U.S. study into the physical, cognitive, and psychological responses that may underlie a fear of falling in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Specifically, the $96,812 two-year grant by the agency’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child…

A specific epigenetic marker, or a chemical modification in DNA that alters gene activity, may explain why adult oligodendrocyte progenitor cells respond differently to therapies aiming to restore myelin than their neonatal counterparts, a study reports. The modification, called a lysine eight acetylation on histone H4, helps to regulate…

People with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who drink low to moderate amounts of alcohol have significantly less disability progression in the years following diagnosis than non-drinkers, a study found. The trend was especially pronounced among women. Although the findings suggest that drinking alcohol may have beneficial effects in some…

TG Therapeutics plans to soon launch a Phase 1 clinical trial to investigate the CAR T-cell therapy azercabtagene zapreleucel, or azer-cel, in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The announcement comes after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared TG’s…

People with multiple sclerosis show subtle alterations in gut bacteria that seem to be consistent across populations in the U.S. and Asia, a new analysis of previously published studies found. “Our work … establishes a generalized and common gut microbiome pattern in patients with MS across geographically and technically…

Indapta Therapeutics will launch a Phase 1 clinical trial in the U.S. in the second half of 2024 to explore its cell-based therapy IDP-023 in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The announcement follows the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) clearance of the company’s investigational…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other conditions who use Mallinckrodt‘s treatment Acthar Gel (repository corticotropin injection) now have a self-injection option, the company said. Acthar Gel Single-Dose Pre-filled SelfJect is available in two dosages — 40 USP units/0.5 ml and 80 USP units/1.0 mL — that…

PIPE-307, an experimental oral therapy that’s currently in Phase 2 testing for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), was shown to promote myelin repair in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS). The preclinical findings were published in PNAS, in the study “Targeting the muscarinic M1 receptor…

Three innovative projects aimed at addressing unmet needs in multiple sclerosis (MS) and fostering new perspectives on the disease have received incubator grants from the nonprofit MS Australia. Totaling AU$74,813 (or about $48,700), the grants will support one-year projects that focus on MS social needs, disease biomarkers, and…

About a third of people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) exhibit cognitive impairments, according to a review by Australian researchers of 50 previously published studies. The findings suggest that cognitive issues might be somewhat less common in RRMS than previous reports have indicated, with prior estimates ranging from approximately…

A machine learning algorithm may be able to accurately predict whether or not people with multiple sclerosis (MS) will experience a worsening of disability in the near term — which may help tailor treatment decisions and improve patient quality of life — according to the findings of a new…

Blocking the activity of a protein called connexin 43 (Cx43) may be an effective strategy to treat multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a recent study in animal models of the disease. A compound called INI-0602, which was designed to inhibit this protein, significantly eased disease severity in mice, including…

Tiziana Life Sciences has received fast track designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its intranasal foralumab to treat nonactive secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS). The FDA gives fast track status to experimental medicines that have the potential to fill unmet needs to treat serious…

Iaso Biotherapeutics has received the green light from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to start clinical trials of its investigational CAR T-cell therapy equecabtagene autoleucel (eque-cel) in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The FDA’s clearance of the company’s investigational new drug (IND) application makes MS the…

Inflammation outside of the brain and spinal cord, which can be caused by infections like the common cold, flu, or urinary tract infections (UTIs), is associated with more damage to the nervous system in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). That’s according to the study “…

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) said it named Tim Coetzee, PhD, president and chief executive officer. Coetzee had been chief advocacy, services, and science officer for the organization, which provides funding and advocacy programs and services and works toward creating a world without multiple sclerosis (MS). Coetzee…

Kesimpta (ofatumumab) is more effective than Aubagio (teriflunomide) among people with multiple sclerosis (MS) from ethnically diverse groups, including Black and African American, Hispanic and Latino, and Asian individuals, according to an analysis of pooled clinical trial data. “Determining whether there are differences in how people respond…

Immutep has been cleared to start a Phase 1 clinical trial in the Netherlands to test IMP761, its experimental antibody therapy for autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), in healthy volunteers. The first-in-human Phase 1 clinical trial seeks to assess the safety and pharmacological properties of IMP761.

Using machine learning to analyze eye scans can help detect slight changes that may be early signs of multiple sclerosis (MS), potentially aiding in early diagnosis of the disease, a study found. The study, “SLO-Net: Enhancing Multiple Sclerosis Diagnosis Beyond Optical Coherence Tomography Using Infrared Reflectance…

Treatment with modafinil, a stimulant approved in the U.S. for treating certain sleep-related disorders, significantly reduced fatigue and improved overall quality of life when used in clinical trials for people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a review of published study data. However, its use was linked to a…

A PhD student at the UMass Chan Medical School will use funding from a newly awarded fellowship to advance his research into the mechanisms used by cells to repair myelin, the protective sheath around nerve cells that’s damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS) and other demyelinating conditions. The ongoing…

Levels of the immune cell protein CHIT1 at diagnosis, taken from the spinal fluid via a spinal tap, may strongly predict how fast disability progression will occur in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study suggests. Compared with standard clinical measures used to predict disease progression — such…