The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted 510(k) clearance for QyScore, a cloud-based imaging software for the automated quantification of key magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) markers of central nervous system (CNS) disease. MRI is an important tool for diagnosing multiple sclerosis and other CNS disorders. By…

Careful profiling of inflammatory markers in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of multiple sclerosis patients, coupled with standard exams and scans, helps in understanding disease evolution and treatment response, a case report suggests. It followed a relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) patient whose inflammatory markers in the CSF remained high over time, and…

A method based on cerebrospinal fluid measurements and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can aid in stratifying patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) at the time of diagnosis, which may help identify a tailored therapeutic approach for each patient from early disease stages. The data was presented by Roberta Magliozzi, from…

Cerebrospinal fluid of progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) patients may carry lower levels of cell-free mitochondrial DNA, according to a team of researchers who say this may be a sign of neurodegeneration among these patients. The study “Cell-free mitochondrial DNA in progressive multiple sclerosis” was published in the journal Mitochondrion.

Potential new ways of capturing disease progression in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients — including those with chronic as opposed to active inflammation — are coming to the fore as analyses continue into the huge amounts of data collected during pivotal clinical trials that led to Ocrevus’ approval, a leading Genentech researcher…

In its work on multiple sclerosis (MS), Biogen has adopted a comprehensive approach that ranges from  drug development to the exploration of real-world data and digital markers of disease. The company will showcase these efforts at the 7th Joint ECTRIMS-ACTRIMS Meeting in Paris on October 25–28. Among its more than 80 presentations at the meeting are updates from its collaboration with Verily and Brigham and Women’s Hospital on using digital sensors that gather data on MS patients between physician visits. Biogen will also share data on the possibility of using such biomarkers to help neurologists in diagnosing and following MS patients — offering information that could potentially help them in making treatment decisions given the variability of the disease in MS patients. The company is also involved in a collaboration with 10 MS centers that aims to generate data collected during routine care. The MS PATHS study includes data from physical examinations, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, and biological samples. A third and similar project — the Big Multiple Sclerosis Data (BMSD) Network —  is merging data from five MS registries, holding prospective information on nearly 140,000 patients. Taken together, these large collections of high-quality, real-world data will help researchers better understand the disease, and so, increase the potential of new treatment discoveries, Biogen says. The company is also working to discover and develop biomarkers that are not digital that may also advance the understanding of MS and its treatment. One such marker is neurofilament light, which signals damage to neuronal axons. Biogen will share data on how this marker changes over time in MS patients. Among presentations focusing on treatment development, Biogen will highlight new efforts with opicinumab . The treatment — intended to repair damage by triggering remyelination — failed to reach it primary goal in the Phase 2 SYNERGY trial earlier this year. Still,  data indicated that some trial participants did respond to the treatment. At ECTRIMS, Biogen will present an analysis of the SYNERGY data that identifies factors — including specific MRI features — that may be linked to a treatment response.  

The life science tech company IQuity has begun taking orders from physicians for an RNA-based blood test that can provide reliable yes or no results for multiple sclerosis in seven days – dramatically faster than previous options, which took months or years. The test, IsolateMS, can be a game-changer in…

A genome-wide study has identified DNA regions associated with higher levels of circulating cytokines, small proteins that pay a role in inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). Alterations in the levels and interplay of cytokines and growth factors play a key role in several inflammatory diseases, including MS. Cytokines help regulate…

Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate or DMF) use by multiple sclerosis (MS) patients can result in liver injury and, in rare cases, even severe injury, a study found, leading its researchers to recommend that patients’ on this treatment be carefully monitored for signs of injury. The study, “…

Many multiple sclerosis (MS) patients have a reduced sense of smell, and the more relapses they have, the worse the problem, according to a study suggesting that smell may be a marker for the disease’s progression. Findings also suggested a connection between reduced sense of taste and MS progression. The…