August 24, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS New Research Project Will Study Nerve Cell-Glia Communication A new research project, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), aims to better understand how different types of cells in the nervous system ā specifically neurons and glia cells ā communicate with each other and ultimately affect both motor and non-motor functions. Its findings may have important implications…
October 29, 2020 News by Teresa Carvalho, MS Newly Discovered Type of Immune Cells May Be Key in Treating MS A recently identified group of immune cells saved damaged nerve cells from death and promoted nervous system repair, a new study suggests. This finding may represent new promise for treating neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The study, “A new neutrophil…
July 22, 2020 News by Marta Figueiredo, PhD Way of Identifying Neurons Essential to Walking, Other Abilities Found Researchers developed a way of using machine learning to identify those cells most important for a given function or task, such as movement, and for evaluating how they respond to potentially restorative treatments. Using Augur, as this method is called, the team was able to identify the neural circuits in…
June 5, 2020 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Ability to ‘Create’ Astrocytes Supports Their Damaging Role in MS, Like Diseases An inflammatory environment can turn astrocytes, key supportive cells for neurons, into their killers, fostering the progression of neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS), a new study shows. This work, led by researchers at the New York Stem Cell FoundationĀ (NYSCF), created for a first time astrocytes derived…
September 13, 2019 News by Joana Carvalho, PhD #ECTRIMS2019 ā Eliminating SARM1 Protects Neurons in Mouse Model of MS Eliminating SARM1, an enzyme that plays a key role in nerve cell degeneration, protects neurons in mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a condition that mimics the key pathological features of multiple sclerosis (MS) in humans. The preclinical findings were presented by researchers atĀ Disarm Therapeutics in a…
August 6, 2019 News by Ana Pena PhD Research Underway on Space Station Looking at Cellular Triggers of MS and Parkinson’s An ongoing experiment at the International Space Station may help identify triggers for multiple sclerosis (MS) andĀ Parkinson’s disease by studying how nerve cells and immune cells interact when exposed to microgravity. Using patient-derived cells, researchers will study the way nerve cells grow, survive, and change their gene…
January 30, 2019 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Brain Cells Key to Myelin Grown in Lab and Show Long-Term Survival Essential to Research, Study Reports Stem cells tweaked in the laboratory have allowed researchers, reportedly for a first time, to generate and maintain ball-shaped cultures ā called spheroids ā of human brain cells in 3D that contain oligodendrocytes, the cells that produce myelin, alongĀ with neurons and the astrocytes that are essential to nerve cell health.
May 24, 2018 News by Jose Marques Lopes, PhD Brain Stimulation Done at Slower Rates May Be Best for MS and Other Patients as Neurons ‘Tire,’ Study Says A non-invasive procedure using magnetic pulses to stimulate the brain may be moreĀ effective in treatingĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) and other patients if the rate of stimulation is slowed, a new study suggests, finding that neurons “tire” with overstimulation and may fail to respond. The research, āLess might be…
July 10, 2017 News by Patricia Silva, PhD B-cell-secreted Toxins Kill Neurons and Myelin-Producing Cells, MS Study Reports B-cells of patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) secrete substances that are toxic to both neurons and neuron-protecting myelin-forming cells, causing both kinds to die, according to a study. Despite analyses of numerous inflammatory and other factors believed to drive MS processes, researchers were unable to identify the molecules that are toxic, however. Dr. Robert Lisak of Wayne State University in Detroit, Dr. Amit Bar-Or of McGill University in Montreal and their teams are now working on identifying the factor, and learning if the process is also involved in progressive MS. Their study, āB-cells from patients with multiple sclerosis induce cell death via apoptosis in neurons in vitro,ā was published in the Journal of Neuroimmunology. It demonstrated that B-cells gathered from the blood of RRMS patients killed lab-grown neurons and oligodendrocyte cells, which form myelin, a protecting coating for nerve cells. Deterioration of the myelin coating and the death of neurons are hallmarks of MS. An earlier study the team conducted indicated that B-cells from MS patients could kill oligodendrocytes. But since the experiments involved only three patients and three controls, the team scaled up their experiments to include 13 patients and an equal number of controls. Both rat and human neurons died when mixed with MS-derived B-cells. In contrast, B-cells from healthy people had little or no impact on the survival of the brain cells. Researchers also discovered that the secreted toxic molecules had no impact on other types of central nervous system cells ā astrocytes and microglia. The toxins killed only neurons and myelin-producing cells. The B-cells triggered a process called apoptosis, or programmed cell death, researchers said. This is basically a suicide program. It tells a cell to die when exposed to stressful factors or toxins. The process differs from cell disintegration. Despite thoroughly screening about 40 inflammation-related substances, researchers were unable to identify any factors that caused the cells to die. The National MS Society and the Research Foundation of the MS Society of Canada funded the research, which the U.S. society highlighted in a news release. In the newest phase of the study, researchers will try to learn more about the processes underlying neuron and myelin-related cell deaths and identify the factors responsible. In addition to testing B-cells from progressive MS patients, the team will examine patients with other autoimmune conditions to see if the process is unique to MS or not. Researchers increasingly realize that B-cells are important to MS processes. This observation was underscored by U.S. regulators' approval of the B-cell depleting therapy Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) at treatment for both relapsing and primary progressive MS.
June 9, 2017 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD New Way of Growing Astrocytes from Stem Cells May Aid Research into Brain Disorders Like MS Researchers at The Salk InstituteĀ have developed a way to growĀ vital brain cells called astrocytes from stem cells, a potential breakthrough for basic and clinical research into several diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS). The study āDifferentiation of Inflammation-responsive Astrocytes from Glial Progenitors Generated from Human Induced Pluripotent…
November 15, 2016 News by Patricia Inacio, PhD Glial Cells Found to Play a Role in Pain Sensation in MS, Other Disorders Researchers have discovered that glial cells can also participate in pain sensation and enhance it in several disorders, including multiple sclerosis (MS). The study, āGliogenic LTP spreads widely in nociceptive pathways,ā was published in the journal Science. Our sensation of pain is processed in the brain…
January 29, 2016 News by Patricia Silva, PhD MS Trigger Believed to Lie in Microglial Cells, Scientists Report Researchers have isolated the particular cell types likelyĀ to initiate common brain disorders and diseases, such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer’s disease, a finding thatĀ may point the way to new and targeted treatments. The brain has a complex cellular architecture characterized by a diverse set of cell types that are…
October 26, 2015 News by admin Neurons in Multiple Sclerosis Patients May be Protected by Vitamin D A new study from Sweden indicates that vitamin D could help protect nerve cellsĀ (neurons) in multiple sclerosis (MS). The report, titled “Vitamin D and axonal injury in multiple sclerosis,“ was published on October 13, 2015, in the Multiple Sclerosis Journal. Scientists have demonstrated, in…