October 14, 2015 Social Clips by admin #Ocrelizumab – How Ocrelizumab Works 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…
October 8, 2015 News by admin Does Sun Exposure in Early Years Delay MS Onset? 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 levelārelated factors,” appeared October 7, 2015 in the journal Neurology.
October 8, 2015 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD ECTRIMS Highlights Latest Developments in Multiple Sclerosis Research 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…
October 8, 2015 News by Malika Ammam, PhD Biomarkers and Predictors For Developing Future Personalized MS Therapies Discussed at ECTRIMS 2015 New developments in the diagnosis and treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) are being discussed at this year’sĀ 31st annual Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS). TheĀ symposium, being held in Barcelona, Spain, will fosterĀ discussions about development of individualized therapiesĀ forĀ MS patients throughĀ a more targeted and efficient…
October 6, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD PCORI Board Approves $83 Million for Research on Multiple Sclerosis, Hepatitis C and Rare Diseases The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Board of Governors recently approvedĀ 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 intoĀ the care of patients infected with hepatitis…
October 1, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD FDA Accepts New Drug Application for Osmotica Pharmaceutical’s Ontinua ER for Spasticity in Multiple Sclerosis Osmotica Pharmaceutical Corp.Ā recently announced that the FDA accepted its New Drug Application (NDA) for OntinuaTMĀ ER.
September 30, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD National MS Society Provides Update on Wellness for Multiple Sclerosis Patients According to the National Multiple Sclerosis SocietyĀ (NMSS), a high priority for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) is to achieve an overall feeling of well-being, or “wellness.” Increasingly, peopleĀ with the disease want to know how can they feel their best, and if lifestyle interventions can affect the course of their…
September 28, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Kessler Foundation Researchers Report BICAMS Can Predict Performance of Everyday Life Activities in Multiple Sclerosis Patients 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…
September 21, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Review Explores Factors that Influence Quality of Life in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis 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 PragueĀ described some āhiddenā issues that influence the quality of life (QoL) in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). In the review,…
September 21, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Fingolimod (Gilenya) Found to Be an Effective Multiple Sclerosis Therapy for Up to Three Years of Treatment An encouraging newĀ analysis reveals that fingolimod isĀ an effective multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy forĀ 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 ofĀ anĀ attack onĀ the central nervous system…
September 18, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD MS Views and News Reaches Two Locations For the First Time in October Non-profit,Ā 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,…
September 18, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Pregnancy-Associated Issues in Multiple Sclerosis Patients Highlighted in New Review 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 āAn overview of pregnancy-related issues in patients with multiple sclerosisā and was developed by researchers at Sapienza…
September 17, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Review on Teriflunomide (AUBAGIO), an Oral Therapy for Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis 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 āTeriflunomide: A Once-Daily Oral Medication for the Treatment of…
September 17, 2015 News by Malika Ammam, PhD Ocrelizumab: a Promising New Treatment for Multiple Sclerosis with Minimal Side Effects 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…
September 16, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Natalizumab Improves the Neurological Condition of Multiple Sclerosis Patients 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…
September 16, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Aphios Awarded Grant for Cannabinoid Production To Develop Therapeutic Agent for MS Aphios Corporation, a green biotechnology company based inĀ 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.
September 11, 2015 News by Maureen Newman Melatonin Levels Positively Correlate With Fewer MS Flare-Ups, According to Study 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 RaĆŗl Carrea Institute for Neurological Research in Buenos Aires. Neurologists Dr. Mauricio Farez and Dr. Francisco Quintana noticed that when melatonin levels are…
September 11, 2015 News by Malika Ammam, PhD Researchers Find OCT Imaging Technique a Reliable Tool for Multiple Sclerosis Assessment 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…
September 8, 2015 News by Maureen Newman New Genetic Risk Factors for Multiple Sclerosis Identified in Study 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*01:01āHLA-DRB1*15:01 and HLA-DQB1*03:01āHLA-DQB1*03:02 gene allele…
September 3, 2015 News by admin Biomarkers of Early MS and Overactive Bladder Identified in New Study Researchers at theĀ University of Athens Medical School in GreeceĀ have found that people with early stage multiple sclerosis (MS) and overactive bladderĀ (OAB) have reductions in brain serotoninĀ and a stress-related hormone, cortisol. Serotonin is a chemical that helps nerve cells to communicate. The study, titled “Neurochemical and…
August 6, 2015 News by admin Could Salt Intake be an MS Risk Factor? 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 workĀ appearedĀ in the August 2015 issue of The FASEB Journal,Ā the journal of the FederationĀ of…
August 3, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD MS Views and News Announces August Educational Events The non-profit organization MSĀ News and ViewsĀ (MSVN) announced that it will host four educational events during the month of August for both patients and other peopleĀ interested in learning more aboutĀ multiple sclerosis (MS). The educational events reflectĀ the organization’s ongoing mission, which is to collect, present and…
July 16, 2015 News by Charles Moore UK Government’s Progress On Improving Neurology Services For MS, Other Diseases Criticized 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…
July 7, 2015 News by Isaura Santos Report Shows MS Patients Miss Out On Access To Palliative Care Services A recentĀ report by Marie Curie fellows organization suggests that those suffering fromĀ neurological conditions such as multiple sclerosisĀ are missing out on care that couldĀ make a major difference inĀ the quality of their lives. When it comes to palliative care, the report contends thatĀ there is a limited understanding about the need…
June 18, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD LMU Researchers Identify Biomarker BCMA to Measure MS Severity In a recent study published in the journal Nature Communications, LMU clinicians have clarified the lifespanĀ 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 byĀ cells…
June 9, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Bone Loss, Osteopenia and Multiple Sclerosis Explored in New Scholarly Review 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…
June 5, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Researchers Determine Specific Genetic Associations With Multiple Sclerosis In a recent meta-analysis published in theĀ International Journal of Molecular Sciences,Ā a team ofĀ 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…
June 5, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Specific MicroRNA Expression Changes According to the Multiple Sclerosis Disease Stage 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…
June 2, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Innate Lymphoid Cell Identified As Cause of Multiple Sclerosis Gender Differences In a recent study published in The Journal of Immunology, researchers from a Northwestern Medicine lab discoveredĀ a potential clueĀ about why women are more likely than men to develop autoimmune conditionsĀ such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The researchers used a specific white blood cell, called the innate lymphoid cell,…
May 29, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD MS Patient Lifespan, Comorbidities Studied in New Research 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 āEffect of comorbidity…