research

Thinning of a layer of nerve cells in the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye, was associated with slower information processing in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), independent of physical disability, a study found. Researchers concluded that the findings support retinal imaging as a potential…

Anti-CD20 therapies, a type of treatment approved for multiple sclerosis (MS), may be highly effective in MS partly because they reduce the immune system’s ongoing response to the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), a well-established risk factor for MS. That’s according to a study involving nearly 200 people that found…

A brief, personalized neuropsychological rehabilitation program may help people with multiple sclerosis (MS) manage cognitive difficulties, according to a feasibility study. Participants reported improvements in their ability to use cognitive strategies, plan daily activities, and cope with fatigue. The study (ISRCTN11203922) showed that the program, called Neuropsychological Evaluation and…

A new $1 billion fundraising campaign by the National MS Society aims to accelerate research breakthroughs in multiple sclerosis (MS) and expand access to patient care and support — with the ultimate goal of bringing the world closer to a future without MS.

Altered neurovascular coupling (NVC), the process that matches brain activity with the blood flow needed to support it, is associated with poorer cognitive function and greater disability in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), a study found. The most consistent finding was an abnormal balance between blood flow and spontaneous…

Higher blood levels of neurofilament light chain (NfL), a well-established marker of nerve damage, are associated with lower daily activity in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), a study found. The study also demonstrated that patients in whom NfL levels increased more rapidly over time tended to…

A high-fat diet may lead to worse disability in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) by altering the composition of gut bacteria, leading to changes in the number of immune cells that enter the brain, a study in mice suggests. According to the researchers, these findings show how a diet…

Prior infection with the cytomegalovirus (CMV), a type of herpesvirus, was associated with lower odds of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), while herpes simplex virus (HSV) infection showed no significant association with the disease. That’s according to a study involving data from more than 320,000 individuals in Israel that also…

Researchers have identified four key biomarkers in the fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord that may be used to assess response to MSC-NP, a type of stem cell therapy currently in early clinical testing for progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). The levels of these four molecules —…

Among people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), greater physical disability is associated with higher depression severity, according to a small study from Egypt. The study showed that people with RRMS had substantially higher rates of at least moderate depression than people without multiple sclerosis (MS). More severe depression was also…

Medically indicated cesarean sections (C-sections) before 39 weeks of gestation, or full term pregnancy, may be more frequent among women with multiple sclerosis (MS) than in those without the disease, a study found. However, this difference was not linked to MS itself, with most commonly reported reasons for early…

Changes in the gut microbiome — the community of bacteria and other microorganisms that live in the digestive tract — at the time of a multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis may offer early clues about how the disease will progress, a study suggests. Researchers found significant differences in the overall gut…

Increased memory loss over longer periods, known as accelerated long-term forgetting (ALF), is greater in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) than in healthy adults, a study found. Although people with MS performed similarly to healthy controls on short-term memory tests, they remembered significantly less information seven days later, suggesting…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) may be marked by problems with the body’s ability to make new mitochondria — the small structures inside plant and animal cells that serve as tiny power plants for turning food into usable energy. That’s the key finding of a new study in which researchers discovered…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who report difficulty sleeping tend to have reduced flow in what essentially serves as the body’s biological sewer system for removing waste from the brain, a new study suggests. The findings imply that getting a good night’s sleep may meaningfully affect brain biology in…

People with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) may have less diverse gut bacteria than healthy people, with shifts in genes involved in how well certain bacteria break through the body’s defenses, according to a study. The findings add to growing evidence that changes in the microbiota may be linked to…

Automated analyses of a person’s everyday speech patterns could offer a simple, noninvasive way of tracking brain tissue loss in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study. Researchers found that changes in speech over a period of two years — in particular, a narrower vocabulary range and more frequent…

A trio of European scientists has linked subtle changes in the brain’s white matter — tissue rich in nerve cell projections — to early relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), a form of the neurodegenerative disease marked by flare-ups interspersed with periods of remission. Using a specialized noninvasive imaging technique, the…

Daily step patterns — captured via wearable devices such as smartwatches — may offer a more complete picture of disability in people with progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) than measurements taken during occasional clinic visits, a study found. Using more than two years of step count data from…

Social and economic factors, including unemployment, being unmarried, or living in disadvantaged neighborhoods, are linked to poorer cognitive skills in adults with multiple sclerosis (MS), especially among non-white people, according to a U.S. study. The findings add to earlier evidence that patients with a lower socioeconomic status, tend…

A drug used to prevent stroke complications may help preserve myelin, the protective coating around nerve fibers that is damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a review of data from animal studies. The treatment, nimodipine, was also associated with reduced inflammation, nerve damage, and disease severity in several…

Concussions during adolescence may increase the risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), but only if the concussion occurs before the individual has infectious mononucleosis, a condition caused by infection with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), according to a new study. The findings suggest that a concussion occurring before a person…

Smoking cigarettes may speed up disease progression in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), while alcohol consumption showed no clear harmful effect, according to a long-term study involving more than 1,300 adults in Germany. Researchers found that smokers, particularly light smokers, were significantly more likely to experience worsening disability and…

A specific type of gut bacteria known as Veillonella ratti — a bacterium shown to exert anti-inflammatory effects — reduced the severity of multiple sclerosis (MS) in a mouse model of the disease, according to a new study. The research suggests that V. ratti changes the activity of other gut…

Damage to the brain’s gray matter — the part of brain tissue that houses the bodies of nerve cells — is associated with a higher risk of long-term disability worsening, cognitive impairment, and death in people with multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study that followed dozens of patients…

Therapies to remove harmful immune B-cells that drive inflammation in multiple sclerosis (MS) may also work by mobilizing protective, gut-derived B-cells into the bloodstream and nervous system, a new study shows. Researchers also found that higher levels of molecules thought to drive such protective functions in B-cells were linked…

Australian researchers are using lab-grown “mini brains” to investigate new ways to repair myelin, the protective coating surrounding nerve cells that is lost in multiple sclerosis (MS). The 3D lab models, grown from human stem cells, will allow researchers to study how myelin forms naturally in the human…

Lower levels of a rare gut bacterium called Akkermansia massiliensis may increase the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS) by reducing the activity of an immune-regulating gene called FcRL3, offering researchers potential new therapeutic targets, according to a genetic study. “The FcRL3 protein plays a key role in linking specific…

In people with multiple sclerosis (MS), an overactive immune response to the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) — most famous as the cause of the so-called kissing disease mono — may be a driver of the neurological condition, a new study suggests. Researchers found that a specific type of immune…

Researchers at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF) received a $470,000 grant to investigate how a ketogenic diet — one that is high in fats and low in carbohydrates — may help protect vision in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The project,…