research

With an interest multiple sclerosis (MS) before even starting college, Dr. Ellen Mowry has spent her entire research career investigating the disease. Her epidemiological studies led her to indications that vitamin D might be particularly important for people with MS, and she now dedicates her research to the topic — knowledge she will share at the…

A new study suggests a strong association in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients between high levels of fatigue and mental health, quality of life (QoL), and the ability to move about and participate in daily activities, although disability is not related to fatigue levels.  These findings are of importance and highlight the…

A commonly prescribed multiple sclerosis (MS) medication may act to modulate the immune system. The finding is described in the article “Dimethyl fumarate treatment induces adaptive and innate immune modulation independent of Nrf2,“ published in  the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. MS develops due to an…

The United Spinal Association, a nonprofit focused on improving the quality of life for people with spinal cord injuries and disorders (SCI/D), a group of conditions that include multiple sclerosis (MS), announced it will have an exhibit booth at the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers‘ (CMSC) 30th Annual Meeting, to be held at the…

A substance called fluorosamine was seen to boost remyelination in mice by preventing the synthesis of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans and by promoting oligodendrocyte function. The findings showed that targeting molecules that block remyelination may be a promising therapeutic approach in multiple sclerosis (MS). Upregulation of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans — large molecules…

Dietary habits and the composition of the gut flora can influence neuroinflammation and affect the outcome of neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study published in the journal Nature Medicine and titled “Type I interferons and microbial metabolites of tryptophan modulate astrocyte activity and central nervous…

Rebound symptoms after stopping fingolimod (Gilenya) treatment affect a “clinically relevant” number of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, a study by University of California, San Francisco, researchers reported. The study called attention to the need for determining the best method of sequencing or stopping MS treatments, and highlighted the need to identify factors…

The evolution of the myelin sheath throughout childhood has been visualized in vivo for a first time, according to findings reported in the study “Mapping an index of the myelin g-ratio in infants using magnetic resonance imaging,” published in the journal NeuroImage. To function well, nerve cells in the brain rely on…

Patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) have increased levels of the neurotransmitter glutamate in their brains, lowering the levels of N-acetylaspartate (NAA) — a process that likely leads to the loss of brain volume. The findings indicate that glutamate might be a driver of neuronal cell death and disease progression in MS,…

Scientists discovered two key players — TBK1 and ICOS — that control the effective production of antibodies and may offer new insights into potential therapies for autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis. The study, “A TRAF-like motif of the inducible costimulator ICOS controls development of germinal center TFH cells via the…

The National Multiple Sclerosis Society has awarded Dr. Bart Rypma, an associate professor at the Center for BrainHealth at the University of Texas at Dallas, a more than $490,000 grant to study how changes in blood flow in the brain might affect cognition in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The grant builds on previous research…

A major new European research program to develop ways of monitoring three main central nervous system diseases —multiple sclerosis (MS), depressive disorder, and epilepsy — using wearable devices and smartphones was launched on April 26. The RADAR-CNS (Remote assessment of disease and relapse Central Nervous System) project, supported by the Innovative…

Dr. Fred Lublin, a neuroimmunologist with a specialty in experimental therapies, will open this year’s annual meeting of the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers on June 1 with an address questioning the continuing importance of relapses in multiple sclerosis (MS). But the question raised by the title of the…

A gift worth $185 million from Joan and Sanford I. Weill to the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) will allow the university to expand its neurosciences programs and facilities, advancing its research work into psychiatric, neurological and neurodegenerative diseases, including multiple sclerosis (MS). The gift, the largest single donation in UCSF history, is…

Researchers at Purdue University have developed a method of identifying subtle oscillations in a person’s posture that mirror an excessive delay in neuromuscular responses, indicating a neurologic deficit. The oscillations, which differ from the normal tendency of a standing person to sway, may aid in diagnosing neuromuscular disorders such as multiple sclerosis (MS).

The Multiple Sclerosis Outcome Assessments Consortium (MSOAC) is making available to qualified researchers a new database containing almost 2,500 records of patients who were part of the placebo groups of nine multiple sclerosis (MS) studies. The MSOAC is a large-scale partnership, launched by the National MS Society and Critical…

In a study published in the International Neurology Journal, researchers showed that cognitive deficits, such as memory problems, in a rat model of multiple sclerosis (MS) are mirrored by changes in synaptic transmission and plasticity in the hippocampus, a brain region crucial for memory processing. The findings…

Researchers at the Center of Excellence for Myelin Repair, a part of Mount Sinai, reported that gut bacteria produce compounds that were seen to affect the myelin content in mice and cause social avoidance behaviors. Study results indicated that targeting gut bacteria, or the gut metabolites, might help in treating neuropsychiatric disorders or complications, such as those…

Researchers at the School of Medicine of the University of California (UC), Riverside, found that TNF-alpha, a factor known for its pro-inflammatory actions, also triggers processes that end inflammation by inducing a type of immune surveillance cell, called M-cells. By advancing our understanding of immune processes, the finding may lead to…

Multiple sclerosis patients using a cognitive remediation computer training program, part of a controlled trial by researchers from NYU Langone Medical Center, had greater improvements in cognitive function than those who used a placebo-training program, according to a presentation at the recent American Academy of Neurology annual meeting in Vancouver, Canada. Problems in attention, memory,…

A researcher at Florida Atlantic University (FAU) has been awarded a $540,250 grant from the National Cancer Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, to support continued research into the collagen degradative processes linked to connective tissue diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). Dr. Gregg Fields, a professor and chair of the Department of Chemistry and…

Dr. Claudia Lucchinetti, chair of the Department of Neurology at the Mayo Clinic and the Eugene and Marcia Applebaum Professor of Neurosciences, has received the 2016 John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research, an honor jointly awarded by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and the American Academy of Neurology…

Mabthera (rituximab), a widely approved drug for treating lymphoma and/or rheumatoid arthritis, is highly effective in treating multiple sclerosis (MS), researchers reported in an observational study in Sweden, where Mabthera is increasingly being used outside of its approved indications to treat relapsing-remitting MS patients. The study, published in the journal…

Sanofi Genzyme is presenting promising data regarding brain volume and retinal nerve fibers in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients — drawn from an ongoing extension study into the disease-modifying drug alemtuzumab (Lemtrada) — at the 2016 American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Annual Meeting  taking place in Vancouver, Canada, through April…

Potentially groundbreaking research by the Tisch Multiple Sclerosis Research Center of New York (MSRCNY) will be presented on April 19 at the 68th American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Annual Meeting taking place in Vancouver, Canada. Dr. Saud A. Sadiq, director and chief research scientist at the Tisch center, will present results of a…

A Phase 2 clinical trial testing the efficacy of a common antihistamine, clemastine fumarate, to treat optic nerve damage in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) found the drug able to slightly reverse damage to their visual system. The  study, conducted by researchers at the Multiple Sclerosis Center at the University of California San…

Sanofi Genzyme will present new data on its approved multiple sclerosis (MS) treatments — Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) and Aubagio (teriflunomide) — at the 68th annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN), taking place in Vancouver, Canada, through April 21, as well as data on investigational therapies in its pipeline. In total, the meeting…

Genentech announced that it will present new data from three Phase 3 clinical trials of its experimental multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy Ocrevus (ocrelizumab) at the 68th annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) being held in Vancouver, Canada, from April 15–21, 2016. Additionally, results of a new endpoint for…

Urinary tract symptoms affect a large proportion of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), yet their extent and type is not well-known. A study reported that among a cohort of people with the disease, almost 70 percent had urinary tract problems, adding to the extent of their disability. The study,…

MedDay SAS recently announced that it has raised €34 million, about $38.5 million, in a Series B financing round. The money will enable the company to lead a confirmatory Phase 3 clinical trial, called SPI2, in the United States to assess its lead candidate, MD1003, as a treatment for progressive multiple sclerosis (MS). MedDay concluded…