research

A mesenchymal stem cell therapy led to significant improvements in quality-of-life scores for people with multiple sclerosis (MS) in a small clinical trial, according to the treatment’s developer Hope Biosciences Research Foundation (HBRF). “The results of this trial are groundbreaking for multiple sclerosis,” Donna Chang, president of HBRF,…

A new technology is designed to be a “wearable” device for neurons, wrapping around individual nerve fibers with a goal of achieving new ways to study and treat neurological diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). Still in early testing stages and needing further refinement, the technology was developed by scientists at…

A first group of healthy adults has been dosed in a Phase 1 safety and tolerability trial of Lucid-21-302, a potential myelin-protective oral treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS), regardless of disease type. These initial volunteers will serve as the trial’s sentinels, an occasional study feature allowing for a…

Higher blood levels of bile acids — molecules found in the digestive fluid bile, which helps absorb fat in the gut — are associated with a slower progression of multiple sclerosis (MS), as indicated by imaging scans, a study by U.S. researchers reported. In a small clinical trial in…

The number of people living with multiple sclerosis (MS) in Australia rose by more than 50% in the decade between 2010 and 2021, according to a recent report. These findings are consistent with global observations that the prevalence of MS has been steadily increasing worldwide. “Research and rapidly translated…

Developing a more comprehensive understanding of the interactions between the brain, blood vessels, and the immune system holds great promise for unlocking new ways to treat neurological diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS), a team of researchers argued in a new commentary paper. “Interactions between the brain, blood vessels, and…

The rate of disability progression among people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) has slowed over the years due to advances in disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), according to a long-term analysis. Patients diagnosed in recent decades have experienced fewer progression events associated with relapses, called relapse-associated worsening (RAW), and also…

Researchers at the Oregon Health & Science University have discovered a plant-derived small molecule that can promote the growth of cells that produce myelin, the protective coating around nerve fibers that’s damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS). The naturally occurring molecule, sulfuretin, blocks the activity of an enzyme that…

Increased production of cholesterol by stem cells in the brain contributes to neurological damage in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a new study conducted in lab-grown cells. Findings suggest cholesterol-lowering medications can reverse this damage, implying such treatments might be able to be repurposed for MS. “Cholesterol metabolism has…

Abnormal activity of ancient viral genes may play a role in the development of multiple sclerosis (MS) and other neurological disorders, a study found. “Future functional studies are essential to elucidate the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying their involvement in these conditions,” the researchers wrote. The study, “…

Transplanting genetically engineered oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs), which give rise to mature myelin-making cells, significantly boosted myelin repair in mice with multiple sclerosis (MS)-like chronic brain lesions. The cells were engineered to ignore chemical signals that would normally inhibit OPCs being recruited into lesions and then restore…

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society is awarding a total of $4.6 million in funding to advance research into how the protective myelin sheath that’s damaged in multiple sclerosis (MS) can be repaired — a step toward developing new treatments for the disease. Five research projects have been chosen…

Sanofi has ended a Phase 2 clinical trial into oditrasertib, an investigational RIPK1 inhibitor therapy, in people with relapsing and progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) after it failed to meet its goals. The study, which had started dosing early last year, failed to show that oditrasertib significantly lowered…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) may have a slightly higher cancer risk than the general population, according to a recent study in France that reviewed a decade of data from more than 140,000 MS patients. The risk of bladder, brain, cervical, and kidney cancer was significantly increased in MS…

Combining the approved medication Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) with targeted therapy using a patient’s own immune cells may eventually be a promising way of treating multiple sclerosis (MS), according to recent research. The targeted therapy uses tolerogenic dendritic cells (tolDCs), which are being tested in clinical trials, to make…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who better adhere to an at-home therapy regimen with the PoNS device — which provides electrical stimulation to the brain and is approved for use in combination with physical rehabilitation — may experience greater improvements in walking function. That’s according to early data…

By studying pairs of identical twins, researchers have identified a population of immune cells whose early activation and migration into the brain might contribute to multiple sclerosis (MS) onset. MS patients showed an altered profile of a population of immune cells called CD8 T-cells in the blood relative to…

A sublingual formulation of cladribine, which is the active ingredient of the approved oral treatment Mavenclad, in relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS), showed comparable pharmacological properties to its name-brand counterpart. That’s according to preclinical data announced by BioNxt Solutions, the formulation’s developer, in a company press release.

Anti-CD20 therapies like Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) and rituximab appear to be ineffective at slowing disability progression in people with primary progressive multiple sclerosis (PPMS), a form of the disease characterized by symptoms that steadily worsen over time, according to data from a real-world study in France. The study,…

Daily treatment with high-dose simvastatin, a widely used cholesterol-lowering medication, failed to slow disability progression in adults with secondary progressive disease or SPMS, according to top-line data from a Phase 3 clinical study. Jeremy Chataway, PhD, a professor of neurology at University College London (UCL) in the U.K.,…

The pharmaceutical company Médunik Canada and Population Council, a nonprofit research organization, are teaming up to investigate the potential use of segesterone acetate, a derivative of the hormone progesterone, as a multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy. The compound is expected to promote the restoration of myelin, the…

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS) has updated its Pathways to Cures Roadmap to account for recent scientific advances in the search for a cure for multiple sclerosis (MS). The details were provided in the report, “The refined Pathways to Cures Research Roadmap for…

A clinical trial is evaluating whether combining a cognitive rehabilitation program with a virtual reality (VR)-based aerobic exercise regimen will improve learning and memory in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and motor disability. Researchers expect the approach will show cognitive benefits via positive effects on a brain region called…

Having antibodies against the rubella virus is associated with an increased risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) in unvaccinated people, a Swedish study suggests. The findings show a rubella infection may be a risk factor for MS, reinforcing the hypothesis that certain viral infections may trigger the misleading immune…

A year of treatment with the experimental BTK inhibitor fenebrutinib was safe and nearly entirely suppressed signs of disease activity, including relapses, disability progression, and brain lesions, in people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new data from the open-label extension part of a Phase…

Treatment with rituximab, a CD20 inhibitor used off-label for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, can stabilize disability progression and reduce disease activity in people with secondary progressive MS (SPMS), according to a review of several published studies. These benefits were reported over a mean follow-up of two years, and…

Transcutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (TTNS), wherein mild electrical impulses are applied to the tibial nerve located near the ankle, may help with sexual dysfunction related to multiple sclerosis (MS) in both men and women, a study suggests. The study, “Tibial nerve stimulation in the management of primary sexual…

Researchers uncovered a mechanism by which regulatory T-cells (Tregs), immune cells that keep the immune system in check and prevent its overactivity, become dysfunctional in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and other autoimmune conditions. Tregs from MS patients exhibited increased levels of a protein called PRDM1-S that ultimately caused…

Rituximab, which is sometimes used off-label for multiple sclerosis (MS), doubles the risk of hospital-treated infections, but may prevent worsening disability better than some approved disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), a Swedish study finds. Hospital-treated infections were significantly associated with a higher risk of relapse-independent disability worsening among relapsing-remitting…

Glial cells, which mostly support the function of nerve cells, play key roles in multiple sclerosis (MS) disease progression and development, according to a stem cell-based study. “Most research and therapeutic strategies have so far focused on blocking the overactive immune system, but how cells in the brain itself,…