Six months of treatment with foralumab, administered into the nose, led to decreases in microglial activity in five of six people with nonactive secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) involved in an expanded access program. Microglia are resident immune cells in the brain believed to play a role in driving…
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New research by scientists in Austria may shed light on the link between the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and multiple sclerosis (MS), and explain why only some people infected with EBV — previously found to raise the risk of MS by 32 times — go on to develop the neurodegenerative disorder. Distinct…
The risk of converting to secondary-progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) has declined in recent years for patients who have an earlier disease onset, an analysis of data from the Swedish MS Registry indicates. The conversion is also occurring later in life and in people who have lived with multiple…
Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients had significantly more sickness-related work absences in the years leading up to their disease onset than people in the general population, a recent Swedish analysis showed. Scientists believe the findings support the growing notion that there is an MS prodrome, during which early signs of…
Treatment with the investigational therapy fenebrutinib significantly reduced the number of new inflammatory lesions visible on MRI scans in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Pharmacological data from the study suggest the anti-inflammatory experimental medication can get into the brain and spinal cord at levels high…
Treatment with tolebrutinib for up to nearly three years was tied to low relapse rates, stable disability, and few new brain lesions among people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new data from the long-term safety (LTS) extension of a Phase 2b trial. The data…
Obese people with multiple sclerosis (MS) had faster disability accumulation, greater cognitive declines, and worse quality of life in the 15 years after diagnosis relative to patients with normal weight, according to an analysis of Swedish data. While it’s been known that obesity was a risk factor for developing…
A personalized dosing schedule for Tysabri (natalizumab) that aims to maintain blood levels of the drug above a certain threshold seems to be just as effective for controlling disease activity in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) as the approved every-four-week dosing schedule. That’s according to interim data from an…
People with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who had an early start on high-efficacy disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) experience slower disability progression compared with those on escalation treatment, according to recent research. The study, which followed patients for up to 10 years, supports starting high-risk RRMS patients on highly effective…
A new under-the-skin formulation of Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) — administered in 10 minutes — is at least as effective as the approved intravenous, or into-the-vein, formulation among people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new clinical trial data. Most people given either the new subcutaneous formulation or the intravenous…
Infection with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) may prime the immune system to accidentally attack a brain protein called ANO2, new research shows. The findings may explain how EBV infection can lead to developing multiple sclerosis (MS), at least in some patients. Daniel Jons, PhD, a scientist at the…
Six months of treatment with the experimental oral therapy vidofludimus calcium (IMU-838) led to significant reductions in a marker of nerve damage among people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to a new analysis of data from a Phase 2 clinical trial. Previous data indicated the therapy significantly reduced…
Welcome to “MS News Notes,” a Monday morning column where I comment on multiple sclerosis (MS) news stories that caught my eye last week. Today I’ll focus on stories from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) 2023 Annual Meeting, held April 22-27 in Boston. Here’s a look at…
There was no evidence of multiple sclerosis (MS) disease activity for at least two years in patients who underwent an autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (aHSCT) at a center in Mexico. And by the most recent follow-up — a median of about seven years after the procedure —…
Most treatments for multiple sclerosis (MS) are not associated with an increased risk of complications during pregnancy, according to a new analysis. A few therapies were associated with slightly elevated rates of congenital abnormalities for babies exposed to treatment during pregnancy, but small sample sizes limit being able to…
New data from a Phase 2 clinical trial testing vidofludimus calcium, Immunic Therapeutics’ novel oral treatment candidate for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), show promising safety and efficacy, according to the company’s chief medical officer. The therapy was found to safely reduce brain lesions and prevent disability progression in…
Can Do MS has three missions for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and their care partners — providing education about life with the disease, building connections among people, and activating them to be proactive about managing their condition. “Those are the three pillars that our programs are built…
People with multiple sclerosis (MS) being treated with Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) less frequently than the recommended every six months are not more likely to experience inflammatory disease activity, an analysis of some 360 patients whose dosing schedules changed during the COVID-19 pandemic suggests. Nicole Bou Rjeily, MD, a postdoctoral…
Even the cold and rainy Southern California weather did little to dampen the excitement of the more than 1,800 attendees converging on the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina. People filtered in, eager for the meeting to begin. Excitement reached a fever pitch Thursday morning as the curriculum came to life.
Briumvi (ublituximab-xiiy) recently became the third anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a treatment for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). TG Therapeutics, the therapy’s developer, is now aiming to make Briumvi the most accessible therapy in its…
Certain cells in the eyes — specifically blood vessel cells and a type of neurological immune cell called microglia — exhibit high expression or activity of genes that have been linked to multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study reports. The researchers also “identified…
Multiple sclerosis (MS) has long been considered a disease that mostly affects white women. But in the U.S., the numbers indicate that Black people, particularly Black women, may be more likely to develop the neurodegenerative disease than people of other racial and ethnic backgrounds. For Black individuals, this misunderstanding…
More than half of the people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) who received Briumvi (ublituximab) in the ULTIMATE clinical trials had no signs of disease activity over the first six months of the trial — and over 80% of participants had no disease activity for the…
People infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) — including HIV-positive individuals who received antiretroviral treatment at some point after infection — are significantly less likely to develop multiple sclerosis (MS), a new analysis suggests. The decrease in MS risk was particularly pronounced…
Nonwhite populations are underrepresented in research that tests therapies for multiple sclerosis (MS), meaning most available data on a treatment’s effectiveness and safety can’t be generalized to all patients. “The absence of diversity in MS research is a problem that concerns us all,” said Léorah Freeman, MD, PhD, a…
Activating certain receptors on astrocytes — a type of nerve support cell — may offer a way of treating cognitive problems in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to recent research. MS mouse models genetically engineered to lack these receptors, called TNFR2, showed signs of greater cognitive problems, whereas cognitive gains…
Limiting calorie intake over two days of each week for three months led to beneficial immune and metabolic changes, as well as improvements in cognitive function, among people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a study found. A restrictive diet also promoted a better body composition, namely a reduction in…
A greater loss of myelin — the protective coating around nerve fibers — in the part of the spinal cord found in the neck was associated with worse disability in people with multiple sclerosis, data from a new study showed. More substantial myelin loss in this region, known…
A history of infection with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) has been shown to be a strong risk factor for developing multiple sclerosis (MS) — but is targeting the virus a viable strategy for MS prevention or treatment? This question was the subject of a debate, “How To…
A certain bacterial species is enriched in the gut of people with secondary progressive multiple sclerosis (SPMS) and may promote neuroinflammation and drive disability progression in these patients, a study found. When isolated from SPMS patients and given to a mouse model, this strain led to more pronounced neurological…