MMJ BioScience, an affiliate of medical cannabis research company MMJ International Holdings, has hired a principal investigator to lead clinical trials exploring potential therapeutic applications of cannabinoids in progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). Dr. Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, a neurology professor at the State University of New York at Buffalo, is executive director…

There’s been a lot of interest in the treatments (including natural treatments) for progressive MS that were presented at the ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS conference in Paris last week. Here are a few of our reports involving that research. #MSParis2017 – MedDay’s High-Dose Biotin, MD1003, Improves Disability in Progressive MS…

Propionic acid supplements alter the composition and behavior of immune cells in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients — likely by changing the composition of gut bacteria, according to Alexander Duscha from Ruhr University Bochum in Bochum, Germany. The finding, presented Wednesday at the 7th Joint ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS Meeting running in Paris…

The numbers of people being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis is rising worldwide, though distinct differences in factors thought to drive this rise are evident among regions, according to MS data represented by researchers on patients in Asia, Latin America, and the Australia-New Zealand. The data was part of the session “Prevalence and…

I have every single malady associated with MS. I’m absolutely positive. Because whenever I find out about a new one, or a new study that says we don’t sleep well, or we twitch or tremble, or suffer from this deficiency or that, I’ve got it.

Diet can play an important role in whether children with relapsing multiple sclerosis have a relapse, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco argue. Their study demonstrated that a diet with a lot of fat increases the risk of a youngster having a relapse by 56 percent, with saturated fat tripling the risk. Eating a lot of vegetables, on the other hand, cuts the risk in half, the team said. Since children with MS tend to have relapses more often than adults, the researchers figured they would be a suitable group to study diet's impact on relapse. They recruited 219 children with relapsing-remitting MS or clinically isolated syndrome from 11 centers across the U.S. Clinically isolated syndrome is a condition that can evolve in MS. The research team use a questionnaire known as the Block Kids Food Screener to analyze what the youngsters ate. They tracked the children an average of almost two years, which was plenty of time for relapses to occur. And, in fact, they did occur in 42.5 percent of the group. It turned out that fat had a particularly devastating effect on the youngsters' relapse rate. For every 10 percent increase in energy intake that came from fat, there was a 56 percent increase in the children's risk of having a relapse. Saturated fats were the biggest driver of risk. When researchers look only at these fats, they discovered that the risk more than tripled. Examples of saturated fats include processed meats such as sausages, ham, and burgers, butter, hard cheeses, and whole milk. Vegetables had the opposite effect on risk, the researchers observed. Using a cup equivalent as a standardized measure, they learned that for every additional cup of vegetables the children ate, the risk of a relapse dropped in half. To exclude the possibility that other factors influenced the results, the team included information about age, sex, ethnicity, duration of disease, body mass index, treatment, and D-vitamin levels in their analyses. This did not influence the results. The team also looked at whether other food components, such as sugar, iron, fruit and fiber, would affect the risk of relapse. They did not find any links. Although the risk associations were strong, the researchers cautioned that the study's observational design meant that it was not able to prove that fat causes relapses. But there are several ways that fat could play a role in disease processes, they argued. For instance, high fat intake triggers the release of inflammation-promoting molecules. It also affectsf gut bacteria that are linked to immune processes. Vegetables lower the risk of inflammation and immune problems, the team said. In an accompanying editorial, Dr. Kathryn Fitzgerald of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine said the study had important limitations. Researchers gathered information on the children's diet only in the week before they enrolled in the study. This might not adequately capture more long-term dietary patterns, she said. And fat is not simply fat, she pointed out, arguing that fish oil is believed to help MS patients. Although the California research offers insight, she called for long-term studies to define diet's role in MS.

The 7th Joint ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS Meeting, the world’s largest annual international conference devoted to basic and clinical research in multiple sclerosis, will run from Oct. 25 to 28 in Paris — the city of Jean-Martin Charcot, the “Father of Neurology,” who provided the first detailed description of multiple sclerosis (MS)…

The role that diet and lifestyle have on the course of MS is a matter of debate. There is a great deal of conflicting information on the topic, and patients may need to look beyond their neurologist or primary care physician to create a dietary approach to MS.

It was a government letter; I opened it with due trepidation. A call for jury service, so not bad news and a chance to do my civic duty. But at this point I was stumbling to the toilet nearly every 15 minutes. This and needing a cab to get…

The risk of people with multiple sclerosis developing cancer is higher if they have used immunosuppressants than if they haven’t, according to a study that followed more than 1,000 patients for a decade. The findings indicate that the often discussed association between MS and cancer may stem from older types of…

University of California at San Francisco Recruiting MS Patients for Gut Bacteria Study Last year, a Harvard study reported significant differences between bacteria that MS patients have in their bellies and that found in those who don’t have MS. If that bacteria is treated, those MS-related changes might…

Reading some social media posts the other day, I found myself humming a line from a late 1960s Arlo Guthrie song: “I don’t want a pickle. Just want to ride on my motor-sickle.” I didn’t think it was possible for someone with MS to ride a “motor-sickle.” It…

In my youth, I hitchhiked the breadth of North America ― Canada, from east to west. I had 16 first cousins in the country and only my parents back at home. My quest was to meet them all. Which I duly did. I traversed the whole of the Trans-Canada…

People with multiple sclerosis have high levels of pro-inflammatory TH17 immune cells in their intestines that correlate with change in the micro-organism mix in their gut and the levels of their disease activity, a study reports. Researchers said the findings suggest that diet, probiotics and therapies that regulate TH17 cells could help treat MS. Probiotics are supplements containing beneficial bacteria. The study, “High frequency of intestinal TH17 cells correlates with microbiota alterations and disease activity in multiple sclerosis,” was published in the journal Science. Research has shown that TH17 cells, also known as T helper 17 cells, play a role in the development of MS. In fact, they were the first harmful immune T-cells to infiltrate the central nervous system, according to studies in animals Where TH17 cells become activated has been unclear, however. Studies in mice suggested it was mainly in the small intestine. Research has also indicated that their activation increases the potential for a person to develop an autoimmune brain disease like multiple sclerosis. An autoimmune disease occurs when the immune system, which defends the body against disease, decides that a person's healthy cells are foreign, and attacks those cells. Researchers decided to see if the findings in mouse models of MS applied to people with the disease. They discovered a link between higher levels of TH17 cells in MS patients' intestines and autoimmune brain problems. They also found a correlation between higher levels of TH17 cells and changes in patients' gut microbiome. The team then identified which bacteria were changing in the gut. Patients with increased levels of TH17 cells and higher disease activity had a higher ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes bacteria and more Streptococcus strains in their gut, particularly Streptococcus mitis and Streptococcus oralis. Previous studies have shown that these species promote TH17 cell differentiation in humans. Cell differentiation involves a cell transforming from one cell type to another — usually a more specialized type. This dramatically changes a cell's size, shape, metabolic — or fuel-burning — activity, and responsiveness to signals. Some studies have suggested a link between T-cell differentiation and brain autoimmune diseases. “On the basis of our findings, we speculate that, under certain conditions, or because of still unknown virulence factors, these Streptococcus strains can colonize the small intestine and favor TH17 cell differentiation in the human gut mucosa [linings],” researchers wrote. In addition to more Streptococcus bacteria, the team detected lower levels of Prevotella bacteria in MS patients with disease activity than in healthy controls or patients with no disease activity. This decrease may also promote TH17 cell differentiation because “Prevotella is capable of producing the anti-inflammatory metabolite propionate that limits intestinal TH17 cell expansion in mice," the researchers wrote. Overall, the team concluded that “our data demonstrate that brain autoimmunity is associated with specific microbiota modifications and excessive TH17 cell expansion in the human intestine.” The findings suggest that regulating TH17 cell expansion, along with changes in diet aimed at regulating intestinal linings, could be ways to help treat MS.

I don’t normally go in for trends. For example, I don’t own a single pair of skinny jeans. I’ve never tried a Unicorn Frappuccino. I’m not on Instagram or Snapchat. I didn’t participate in the Ice Bucket Challenge. And I refuse to use the words “doggo,” “pupper,”…

Fatigue and limited leg function are more common among older people with progressive multiple sclerosis than in those with relapsing forms of the disease, according to a study. In fact, they are a sign that the disease of a person with relapsing MS is becoming worse by reaching the progressive MS…

If I was writing fiction about two disabled people going on a road trip, I’d be pleased to create a character like Nigel. He’s stroppy, Northern (from the perspective of the U.K. there isn’t a direct U.S. analogy – think deep south– but really cold and more booze!)…

I now introduce myself as a disability rights activist. I began to pay attention to local politics and related activities last fall. Our city redevelopment plans are charging along, without any city staffer to pay attention to the needs of the disabled. As such, I’ve been making the…

Here’s my Pick of the Week’s News, as published by Multiple Sclerosis News Today. Canada, World’s Multiple Sclerosis Capital, Launches 3-Way Collaboration to Research MS Progression Why some people develop primary progressive MS and others have the relapsing type, and why a many relapsing patients develop secondary…

The use of antibiotics in childhood, which alters the microbiome — or natural bacteria flora in the gut — may increase the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and other inflammatory diseases, according to an Australian study. The mouse study, “Early-life antibiotic treatment enhances the…

Editor’s note: Our IBD columnist, Judy Walters, will have a new book out Tuesday in which the central character has multiple sclerosis. Here, she remembers how MS affected her own family during her childhood. I was only 10 when my grandmother died, but I remember so much about her. I remember…

Here is my Pick of the Week’s News, as published in Multiple Sclerosis News Today. ‘Liberation Therapy’ Is Useless, Costly, Potentially Dangerous, Study Finds At last, some positive research to debunk a supposed treatment that is not supported by any genuine repeatable research. To hear this ridiculous…

People with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) are more likely to feel exhausted and have limited leg function than those without progressive MS as they age, a preliminary study suggests. The findings will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) 69th Annual Meeting, set for April 22-28 in Boston.

The ACTRIMS 2017 Forum is the source of my Pick of the Week’s News as published in Multiple Sclerosis News Today. There is Increased Evidence Linking Viruses to MS Risk This evidence goes some way toward justifying my view, previously published, about connections between viruses and MS. In particular,…

The absence of epigenetic factors in myelin-producing oligodendrocyte cells make sure that myelin production is switched off in the adult brain. Targeting these factors may be a way of triggering myelin regeneration in multiple sclerosis (MS), and a step toward personalized medicine for this disease, Dr. Patrizia Casaccia said in a talk…

Short-chain dietary fatty acids, such as propionate, drive the production of regulatory immune T-cells in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), while long-chain acids promote T-cells that are involved in inflammatory processes. Since the beneficial fatty acids are safe and can be obtained as over-the-counter dietary supplements, researchers suggest they could…

The discovery of a new type of immune cell in the membranes covering the brain is likely to advance understanding of the immune system’s impact on the brain, a study says. It could also lead to new treatments for multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurodegenerative diseases. Researchers knew the immune…

Ari Waisman, a multiple sclerosis (MS) researcher credited with having made major contributions to “the successful development of modern anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory therapies,” was recently honored by the Sobek Foundation. The author of over 170 scientific articles on MS, Waisman is the director of the Institute for Molecular Medicine at the University Medical Center…

Promising data from a small Phase 2a clinical trial sponsored by RedHill Biopharma for an antibiotic designed to fight certain infections suggests that adding the drug candidate to interferon treatment reduced relapse rates and brain lesion formation in patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). This novel treatment approach was based on…