Oligodendrocytes, the cells responsible for making myelin, are constantly being made throughout the brain and spinal cord, even when there’s no myelin damage, according to a new study by U.S. researchers. These findings challenge the long-held view that oligodendrocyte precursor cells mostly differentiate into oligodendrocytes at sites of damage…
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A history of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) appears to alter the immune systems of people with specific genetic traits, causing their own cells to mistakenly flag brain proteins as dangerous threats, according to a new study. This discovery offers insight into how these risk factors — viral infection and…
Inflammatory gut bacteria that carry proteins structurally similar to myelin, a protective layer surrounding nerve fibers that is damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS), may trigger the development and progression of the disease, according to a new study done in mouse models. The findings may pave the way toward new…
Quantum Biopharma has completed dosing in two toxicology studies requested by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that aim to support the launch of clinical studies of Lucid-MS, an experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) that’s designed to slow myelin loss. The 180-day toxicity and toxicokinetic…
Throughout 2025, the team at Multiple Sclerosis News Today brought our readers the latest advances and updates in research related to multiple sclerosis (MS). Below are the top 10 most-read news stories we published this year. We look forward to continuing to serve the MS community in 2026 and…
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…
Myelin, the protective coating that helps nerve signals travel quickly and efficiently, also plays a key role in the precise timing of communication between brain cells, a new study from scientists in the Netherlands shows. In a mouse model, the researchers found that the loss of myelin disrupted the coordination…
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…
A Phase 2 clinical trial testing PIPE-307, an experimental therapy designed to support myelin repair in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), has failed to meet its primary or secondary efficacy goals. The U.S.-based VISTA trial (NCT06083753) enrolled more than 180 adults with relapsing-remitting MS (RRMS). Participants received…
A new technique is letting scientists peer into the brain’s wiring with greater detail by simply using a microscope and an LED light, an accessible and cost-effective method that may be useful for studying brain damage in neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The method, called Computational Scattered…
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…
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…
Signs of myelin damage are detectable about one year before damage to nerve fibers is apparent and about seven years before the onset of multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms, a new study reveals. These findings shed new light on the timing of MS onset, and could open new avenues to…
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…
Researchers have identified two experimental medications that may promote myelin repair in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The two compounds have shown promise in cell and animal models, and preclinical work is ongoing to bring them into clinical testing. The compounds were identified by academic researchers, but the program…
Combining the diabetes medication metformin and the antihistamine clemastine significantly increased myelin repair in people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to results from a Phase 2 clinical trial. However, the effects were small, and participants showed no improvements in disability or visual function after six months of treatment.
Aerobic exercise may help promote myelin repair in some parts of the brain in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a small study. Though the study included a small number of participants and followed them for a short period of time, the findings suggest that “supporting metabolic health…
Targeting a protein called SOX6 could be an effective way to promote myelin repair in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a study found. Researchers said the results point to a way for new therapies to treat the condition. The study found SOX6 could control the maturation of oligodendrocytes, the…
An oral treatment that could repair nerve damage in multiple sclerosis (MS) is a step closer to a Phase 2 clinical trial. Quantum Biopharma signed a manufacturing agreement covering an oral formulation of its investigational small molecule Lucid-21-302, also known as Lucid-MS, as it prepares for the Phase 2…
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…
Treatment with neural stem cells, which have the ability to differentiate into neurons and other supportive cells of the nervous system, was safe and significantly boosted myelin repair in spinal cord lesions in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS), a study showed. The stem cells were able to…
Quantum Biopharma filed a U.K. innovation passport application to streamline the development and review of Lucid-21-302 (Lucid-MS), a therapy designed to promote myelin repair in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The submission, made via Quantum’s Australian subsidiary, Huge Biopharma Australia, marks the first step to entering the U.K.’s Innovative…
Anti-CD20 therapies, a type of treatment approved for multiple sclerosis (MS), alter the activity of several types of immune cells, including increasing the levels of certain anti-inflammatory immune cells. That’s according to the study “Transcriptomic profiling after B cell depletion reveals central and peripheral immune cell…
The first person with multiple sclerosis (MS) has been successfully imaged in a clinical trial evaluating a new positron emission tomography (PET) tracer designed to detect changes in myelin loss, or demyelination. The Phase 1 study (NCT04699747), a joint effort between Quantum Biopharma and Massachusetts…
Pro-inflammatory signaling molecules that have been implicated in multiple sclerosis (MS) cause problems with the growth and development of myelin-making cells in the brain, according to a study done in cell models. The findings may have implications for treating MS, as promoting the growth of myelin-making cells could be…
Quantum Biopharma has signed an agreement with a global pharmaceutical contract research organization to continue advancing Lucid-21-302, its experimental therapy for promoting myelin repair with multiple sclerosis (MS). The collaboration will help the company put together an investigational new drug (IND) application for the therapy, which is also…
Quantum Biopharma intends to ask the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) this year for permission to start a Phase 2 clinical trial testing Lucid-21-302, its novel therapy for promoting myelin repair, in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The company announced that it has completed dosing in a…
Certain lesions in the spinal cords of people with multiple sclerosis (MS) show damage to nerve fibers despite having normal myelin, according to a study done on postmortem samples using powerful MRI scans paired with detailed tissue analyses. The identification of these lesions “provides a novel opportunity to detect…
Clinical improvements in vision and cognition linked to the use of treatment candidate CNM-Au8 were correlated with signs of nerve cell repair and remyelination among people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), according to new data. Remyelination is the process by which myelin, the fatty substance surrounding nerve cells…
Quantum Biopharma is partnering with researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston on a clinical study to test a positron emission tomography (PET) tracer for monitoring changes in myelin content in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The Phase 1 study (NCT04699747) is recruiting healthy adults and people…