In an effort to access firsthand patient data as a means of improving healthcare and drug safety, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced a unique partnership with PatientsLikeMe, an online network of 350,000 patients who have reported on their own personal experiences in living with over 2,500 different diseases. The…
research
Adamas Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company developing therapies for chronic disorders of the central nervous system, recently announced the beginning of a Phase 2 study that will assess the efficacy of amantadine HCl (ADS-5102) in patients with a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) who suffer from walking impairments. “We are…
With 26 states plus the District of Columbia now allowing medical marijuana use, according to a recent North American Research Committee on Multiple Sclerosis (NARCOMS) survey, many people with multiple sclerosis are considering the herb as a therapeutic option. NARCOMS is a research program that allows people with Multiple Sclerosis…
RedHill Biopharma Ltd. enrolled the final patient for its Phase IIa, proof-of-concept study testing RHB-104 in patients with relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who test positive for Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). RedHill is evaluating RHB-104 as an add-on therapy to interferon beta-1a for a treatment…
In a recent review published in the journal Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism, German researchers explored the complexity of interwoven pathways of osteopenia, and how it relates to diseases such as MS. Osteopenia is a bone condition characterized by a decreased density of bone, which leads to bone…
A study recently published in the journal PLoS One compared the use of a specific treatment based on interferon beta-1a with other approved injectable therapies in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). The study is entitled “A Network Meta-Analysis of Efficacy and Evaluation of…
In a recent meta-analysis published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences, a team of researchers found evidence regarding the association between specific polymorphisms of the gene CD24 and MS using a method that combined data from case-control studies with family-based data. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic and…
Researchers at the Don C. Gnocchi Foundation and the University of Milano in Italy recently discovered that the levels of a specific RNA molecule vary in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) according to their disease stage and clinical progression. The study was published in the…
Researchers at Monash University and the MIMR-PHI Institute of Medical Research in Australia recently proposed that specific human stem cells with immunomodulatory properties represent a new promising therapeutic strategy for diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). The study was published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation and…
An exciting new discovery has turned the medical world upside down, and could have important implications for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS). It turns out that previously undiscovered vessels exist that connect the nervous system and immune system directly. The study, titled “Structural and functional features…
Neuromyelitis optica (NMO), a rare autoimmune disorder often mistaken for multiple sclerosis, is similar in that it is characterized by myelin destruction in the optic nerves and spinal cord. In contrast to multiple sclerosis, as reported by the Transverse Myelitis Association, NMO does not initially affect…
In a recent study published in The Journal of Immunology, researchers from a Northwestern Medicine lab discovered a potential clue about why women are more likely than men to develop autoimmune conditions such as multiple sclerosis (MS). The researchers used a specific white blood cell, called the innate lymphoid cell,…
Researchers at the University of Manitoba in Canada recently conducted a study that explored the differences in lifespan and comorbidities in patients with multiple sclerosis compared to healthy individuals. The study was recently published in the journal Neurology and is entitled “Effect of comorbidity…
A new study confirmed that depression and chronic fatigue often occur in multiple sclerosis (MS); and in a related condition known as neuromyelitis optica (NMO). NMO is similar to MS because myelin–the fatty substance that insulates nerve cells and helps them to communicate–is also lost. In NMO the myelin deteriorates mostly…
Exploratory research conducted at Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Illinois at Chicago may translate into a new therapeutic agent to treat progressive multiple sclerosis. Researchers in the laboratories of Dr. Jefferey L. Dupree and Dr. Douglas L. Feinstein tested a new compound in mice with induced multiple sclerosis…
Researchers in the Department of Immunology at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis were able to identify a faulty “brake” in immune cells which may be involved in the inflammation triggering multiple sclerosis (MS). This brake is believed to be able to control inflammation, offering the potential for the development of new…
A new study recently published in the journal Annals of Neurology revealed a potential new therapeutic strategy to halt multiple sclerosis (MS) disease progression. The study is entitled “Melanoma cell adhesion molecule–positive CD8 T lymphocytes mediate central nervous system inflammation” and was led by…
This week, Belgian-based biopharmaceutical company Ablynx announced they have entered into an exclusive research collaboration with Genzyme, a Sanofi company, to investigate the use of Nanobodies as part of a targeted therapeutic strategy for multiple sclerosis (MS). The research will utilize Genzyme’s early-stage MS research programs involving neuroprotection…
A team led by researchers at San Raffaele Scientific Institute in Italy and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts recently revealed a new genetic variant linked to multiple sclerosis (MS). The study is entitled “A pharmacogenetic study implicates SLC9a9 in multiple sclerosis disease activity” and is published in…
There has been a great deal of recent interest in the connection between nervous system function and the complex bacteria that are found in the gastrointestinal system, known as the gut microbiome. Some scientists believe that differences in the type of bacteria found in the gut may underlie neurological disease. In…
A new study recently published in the journal Science Translational Medicine revealed a key difference in immune T cells between multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and healthy individuals. The study is entitled “Functional inflammatory profiles distinguish myelin-reactive T cells from patients with multiple sclerosis” and…
A study recently published in the journal JAMA Neurology revealed that celiac disease is linked to a significant increase in the risk of nerve damage. The study is entitled “Risk of Neuropathy Among 28,232 Patients With Biopsy-Verified Celiac Disease” and was conducted by researchers…
While multiple sclerosis (MS) is considered a rare condition with major unmet medical needs, the treatments for progressive forms of MS are even scarcer, with no viable, FDA-approved drugs available to specifically address these forms of the disease. Because of this, the MS community is eagerly following a major…
Amarantus BioScience has released preliminary data from a blood test for multiple sclerosis (MS) called the MSPrecise diagnostic. The company believes that the test could lead to more accurate diagnoses of MS early in the disease’s progression. MSPrecise is a DNA sequencing test designed to identify specific DNA mutations that are associated with the…
In a recent publication in Nature, titled “Drug-based modulation of endogenous stem cells promotes functional remyelination in vivo” a team of researchers from Case Western University and Northwestern University screened a library of small molecules to assess their ability to drive the conversion of…
MediciNova, Inc., a publicly-traded biopharmaceutical company developing novel, small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of diseases with unmet medical needs, recently announced that the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) notified the company of full enrollment of their ongoing clinical study evaluating ibudilast (MN-166) for the treatment of progressive…
US-based Multiple Sclerosis Outcome Assessments Consortium (MSOAC) has invited New Zealand-based Innate Immunotherapeutics Limited to join their efforts to develop clinical outcome assessment tools to be used in clinical research on multiple sclerosis (MS). The tool being developed is expected to include a series of tests while improving, accelerating and evaluating…
The Myelin Repair Foundation (MRF) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) will initiate a clinical trial of guanabenz in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). Guanabenz is FDA-approved for high blood pressure, but it may also prevent myelin loss. The drug could be the first for MS to protect myelin from…
The Multiple Sclerosis Association of America (MSAA) recently published the latest MS Research Update both printed and online at mymsaa.org. This update is a comprehensive overview of research findings on FDA-approved disease-modifying therapies, as well as many experimental treatments for relapsing forms of…
A study published in the journal Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders, led by researchers at Mount Sinai in New York and Celgene Cellular Therapeutics revealed that an infusion based on cells derived from the placenta proved to be safe for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and a…