Multiple sclerosis (MS) may follow two distinct biological paths that differ in how early and how quickly nerve damage develops, according to a new study. Using artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze brain MRI scans together with a blood test linked to nerve damage, researchers identified one MS pattern marked…
MS lesions
The balance between two immune signaling molecules — CXCL13 and BAFF — may help identify the hard-to-treat inflammation in the brain and spinal cord that’s thought to be a major driver of disability progression in multiple sclerosis (MS), a study found. The findings may help identify which patients are…
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Scinopharm Taiwan’s glatiramer acetate injection, a generic of Copaxone, to treat multiple sclerosis (MS). Scinopharm is the first pharmaceutical company in Taiwan to win U.S. approval for glatiramer acetate, marking a significant milestone…
An enzyme called CEMIP could be a target for small-molecule inhibitors that aim to promote myelin repair in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other conditions marked by myelin loss, a study found. Researchers discovered that CEMIP, which is elevated in areas of inflammatory nerve damage in people with…
Children with multiple sclerosis (MS) who have more paramagnetic rim lesions (PRLs) — areas of chronic active inflammation seen on MRI scans — tend to lose more brain volume over time, a new study found. These lesions were common in pediatric MS, a rare form of the disease…
Octave Bioscience is entering into a collaboration with Quest Diagnostics to expand access to its multiple sclerosis disease activity (MSDA) test, which uses data from a set of blood biomarkers to measure how active a patient’s disease is in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Although the MSDA…
Oligodendrocytes, the cells that build and repair myelin in the brain and spinal cord, may play a role in the inflammatory processes involved in multiple sclerosis (MS), even at the earliest stages of disease, according to a study in a mouse model. “We found that oligodendrocytes transition to disease…
More than 3 million doses of Vueway (gadopiclenol), a lower-dose gadolinium contrast MRI agent used to diagnose and monitor conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS), have been administered at more than 900 customer sites, maker Bracco Diagnostics said. Approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in children…
A new wearable brain-mapping tool could dramatically change how doctors monitor people with multiple sclerosis (MS), making it easier to track disease progression and guide personalized care. Researchers showed the system, OPM-MEG, reliably detects abnormalities in the brain’s electrical activity in MS patients. The portable technology is a major…
Researchers have developed a highly sensitive imaging technique that can detect damage to myelin, the fatty wrapping around nerve fibers that is damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS), in large areas of the brain, according to a study. The tool may help assess the extent of myelin damage in…
Obexelimab, a therapy Zenas Biopharma is developing for a range of autoimmune diseases, almost completely prevented the formation of new inflammatory lesions in adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in the first three months of a clinical trial. That’s according to data from the first part…
People with multiple sclerosis (MS) have altered levels of bacteria in their mouths, with reduced levels of normal healthy bacteria and higher levels of bacteria that can cause disease, a new study reports. “Your mouth may reveal more about your overall health than you think,” Ashutosh Mangalam, PhD, senior…
Researchers have identified a protein that naturally slows myelin production — a finding that could lead to ways to repair myelin damage in multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurological disorders. In mice, the protein (called Tfii-i) was found to limit the activity of genes that drive myelin formation. When…
Seizures in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) may be driven by changes in levels of certain brain signaling molecules, implying that targeting these molecules may be a viable strategy to treat MS-related seizures, according to new research done in a mouse model. “If the same transporters and receptors are…
A new grant from the Valhalla Foundation will help Octave Bioscience advance the development of a biomarker blood test for detecting disease progression in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The company is developing its MS Disease Progression test, or MSDP, to objectively measure MS progression based on…
Consuming large amounts of ultra-processed foods (UPF) — products high in additives, artificial ingredients, and extensive processing — is associated with increased disease activity in people with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS), which is the first presentation of multiple sclerosis (MS), a study has found. The analysis used a…
Doctors will be able to diagnose multiple sclerosis (MS) faster and with greater accuracy — allowing patients to access treatment and support earlier — following an update to the McDonald criteria, the official guidelines used to diagnose the condition. The revision reflects advances in understanding the biology of…
People with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who started fasting or adopted a ketogenic diet — one low in carbs and rich in fat — for 18 months showed reductions in risk factors for heart and metabolic disease that were similar to those who followed a standard healthy diet, according…
Paramagnetic rim lesions (PRLs), which represent areas of damage in the brain and spinal cord with chronic active inflammation, are highly indicative of multiple sclerosis (MS) in people being evaluated for the disease, a new study reports. The findings support using this imaging biomarker as a useful tool for…
The CD20 inhibitor Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) rapidly depletes immune B-cells in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), as expected, but ongoing treatment also leads to changes in immune T-cells, a new study reports. After about six months of treatment, patients experience T-cell changes such as an increase in regulatory…
Octave Bioscience has raised $35.6 million in funding to continue marketing its multiple sclerosis (MS) disease activity test and accelerate the development of a similar tool for Parkinson’s disease. The Multiple Sclerosis Disease Activity (MSDA) test — the first blood test of its kind…
Most children with multiple sclerosis (MS) have chronic active lesions that slowly get bigger over time, and their frequency seems to correlate with the total number of lesions and reduced brain growth, according to a research letter. Changes in disability or cognitive scores over time, however, weren’t significantly associated…
A new positron emission tomography (PET) tracer may help determine the extent of nerve fiber loss in multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions, something that can’t be identified with conventional MRI imaging, according to a new study. Researchers think the new imaging tech could help track the efficacy of experimental therapies…
People who develop multiple sclerosis (MS) begin using healthcare services more frequently up to 15 years before their first MS symptoms appear, a study from the University of British Columbia (UBC) suggests. The findings add to evidence that early signs of MS may go unnoticed for many years.
Neurofilament light chain (NfL) — a protein that gets released when nerve cells are damaged — is found at high levels in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of people with multiple sclerosis (MS), suggesting its potential as a biomarker of the disease, a study has found. CSF is…
Medications that can promote the repair of the myelin sheath — the protective coating around nerve cells in the body — may also help limit nerve damage in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new analysis of data from a small clinical trial testing an anticancer therapy called bexarotene…
Have you ever been on a flight of stairs and misjudged the height of the steps, causing you to lose your footing? That happens to me more than I’d like to admit. This misjudgment stems from our depth perception, which is our ability to view the world in three dimensions,…
A type of imaging finding called iron rim lesions are associated with more severe disability and a greater extent of brain damage in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a new analysis suggests. This specific imaging finding may help guide discussions about individualized treatments for MS, the study’s researchers said.
Fenebrutinib significantly reduced the occurrence of new brain lesions with active inflammation in people with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), a Phase 2 clinical trial found. In the open-label extension portion of the FENopta trial (NCT05119569), disease activity “remained very low” for nearly one year, researchers wrote, with 98%…
A common virus that causes cold sores, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), may contribute to multiple sclerosis (MS). That’s according to a study by researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). In mice lacking a protein that helps control HSV-1, infection led to the degradation of the…