Ocrelizumab, an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, targets mature B-cells. Almost 95% of the B-cell population has these antigenic epitopes after maturation and does not shed them, which is what makes it a potent marker for therapeutic purposes (cancer being a very common area of interest in this regard). Read more…

Exposure to sunlight may delay the development of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study from researchers in Denmark. The work, titled “Association between age at onset of multiple sclerosis and vitamin D level–related factors,” appeared October 7, 2015 in the journal Neurology.

The 31st Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) is currently being held in Barcelona, from 7 to 10 of October, 2015. As the biggest scientific event focused on Multiple Sclerosis, researchers and clinicians from around the world, with more than 8,000 participants, gather…

New developments in the diagnosis and treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) are being discussed at this year’s 31st annual Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS). The symposium, being held in Barcelona, Spain, will foster discussions about development of individualized therapies for MS patients through a more targeted and efficient…

The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Board of Governors recently approved an $83 million grant to support 26 patient-centered, comparative effectiveness clinical research (CER) studies on a range of diseases and patient groups. Two of these grants, totaling $29.5 million, will fund research into the care of patients infected with hepatitis…

Osmotica Pharmaceutical Corp. recently announced that the FDA accepted its New Drug Application (NDA) for OntinuaTM ER.

According to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS), a high priority for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) is to achieve an overall feeling of well-being, or “wellness.” Increasingly, people with the disease want to know how can they feel their best, and if lifestyle interventions can affect the course of their…

Kessler Foundation researchers recently reported that the Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis (BICAMS) is able to predict the performance of normal daily activities. According to the researchers, the BICAMS is a promising tool to predict actual functional performance in participants with multiple sclerosis (MS). MS is a progressive…

In a recent review published in the European Journal of Neurology, A. P. Lysandropoulos from the University of Brussels and E. Havrdova, from the University of Prague described some ‘hidden’ issues that influence the quality of life (QoL) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). In the review,…

An encouraging new analysis reveals that fingolimod is an effective multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy for a treatment period of up to three years. The results were presented at the Annual Meeting of the Consortium of MS Centers. MS is a chronic, progressive neurodegenerative disorder that is the result of an attack on the central nervous system…

Non-profit, MS News and Views (MSVN), which works nationally to increase education and knowledge about multiple sclerosis (MS), has announced the organization of two events during the month of October. For the first time, the organization will host two events with the exact same structure and theme,…

A study recently published in the European Journal of Neurology reviewed some of the issues associated with pregnancy in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. The study is entitled “An overview of pregnancy-related issues in patients with multiple sclerosis” and was developed by researchers at Sapienza…

A review recently published in the journal Clinical Therapeutics focused on teriflunomide as a treatment for patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), taking into account its reported clinical efficacy and safety. The study is entitled “Teriflunomide: A Once-Daily Oral Medication for the Treatment of…

On September 16, 2015, Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche announced that ocrelizumab, a drug originally designed to treat rheumatoid arthritis that saw its development stopped due to an association with infections, could potentially treat relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) as well as primary progressive MS (PPMS) with minimal sides effects compared…

Results from a recent Brazilian study, published in the journal Arquivos de Neuro-Psiquiatria, revealed that natalizumab is an effective treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. The study is entitled “Natalizumab treatment in multiple sclerosis: the experience from two Brazilian MS centers“. MS is…

Aphios Corporation, a green biotechnology company based in Massachusetts that uses environmentally sustainable technologies, recently announced it was awarded the Phase II portion of a Fast Track SBIR grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the production of cannabidiol (CBD) from marijuana.

Melatonin, the same hormone that helps people fall asleep by regulating the body’s internal clock, may be helpful in treating multiple sclerosis, according to a study from Raúl Carrea Institute for Neurological Research in Buenos Aires. Neurologists Dr. Mauricio Farez and Dr. Francisco Quintana noticed that when melatonin levels are…

In a newly published study in the PLOS One journal entitled “Reliability of Intra-Retinal Layer Thickness Estimates“, researchers from Germany explored the precision and reliability of a medical imaging technique named optical coherence tomography (OCT) in measurements of thickness of different intra-retinal layers in…

Two new risk factors for multiple sclerosis have been identified by a research group at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Led by Dr. Loukas Moutsianas, the team discovered that having HLA-DQA1*01:01–HLA-DRB1*15:01 and HLA-DQB1*03:01–HLA-DQB1*03:02 gene allele…

Researchers at the University of Athens Medical School in Greece have found that people with early stage multiple sclerosis (MS) and overactive bladder (OAB) have reductions in brain serotonin and a stress-related hormone, cortisol. Serotonin is a chemical that helps nerve cells to communicate. The study, titled “Neurochemical and…

Most people know that eating too much salt is bad for your health, but a new study suggests that it could also increase the risk for multiple sclerosis (MS). The work appeared in the August 2015 issue of The FASEB Journal, the journal of the Federation of…

The non-profit organization MS News and Views (MSVN) announced that it will host four educational events during the month of August for both patients and other people interested in learning more about multiple sclerosis (MS). The educational events reflect the organization’s ongoing mission, which is to collect, present and…

The Multiple Sclerosis Trust — a UK charity dedicated to providing information for anyone affected by multiple sclerosis, education programs for health professionals, funding for practical research and campaigning for specialist multiple sclerosis services, says the recent Update on UK report shows little improvement in meeting key objectives for…

A recent report by Marie Curie fellows organization suggests that those suffering from neurological conditions such as multiple sclerosis are missing out on care that could make a major difference in the quality of their lives. When it comes to palliative care, the report contends that there is a limited understanding about the need…

In a recent study published in the journal Nature Communications, LMU clinicians have clarified the lifespan of antibody-producing cells and have also identified a novel biomarker that could be used to monitor autoimmune conditions such as multiple sclerosis and lupus erythematous. The humoral immune response is mediated by cells…

In a recent review published in the journal Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, German researchers explored the complexity of interwoven pathways of osteopenia, and how it relates to diseases such as MS. Osteopenia is a bone condition characterized by a decreased density of bone, which leads to bone…

In a recent meta-analysis published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, a team of researchers found evidence regarding the association between specific polymorphisms of the gene CD24 and MS using a method that combined data from case-control studies with family-based data. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic and…

Researchers at the Don C. Gnocchi Foundation and the University of Milano in Italy recently discovered that the levels of a specific RNA molecule vary in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) according to their disease stage and clinical progression. The study was published in the…

In a recent study published in The Journal of Immunology, researchers from a Northwestern Medicine lab discovered a potential clue about why women are more likely than men to develop autoimmune conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The researchers used a specific white blood cell, called the innate lymphoid cell,…

Researchers at the University of Manitoba in Canada recently conducted a study that explored the differences in lifespan and comorbidities in patients with multiple sclerosis compared to healthy individuals. The study was recently published in the journal Neurology and is entitled “Effect of comorbidity…