research

Here’s my Pick of the Week’s News, as published by Multiple Sclerosis News Today. Nanobionic Clothing Seen to Help Clear Body of Free Radicals Associated with MS and Other Diseases A recent study in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry…

Gut bacteria and health have been topics of considerable scientific speculation in recent years, and the field of multiple sclerosis (MS) research is no exception. But what do we really know about MS and our intestinal inhabitants? A review, “Emerging Concepts on the Gut Microbiome and Multiple Sclerosis,” published in…

Building on work began in stroke studies and applying it to multiple sclerosis, researchers in France report that an antibody they developed kept the blood-brain barrier intact in cellular and mice MS models despite the presence of inflammation, preventing immune cells from entering the brain. The key to understanding the study…

Women with multiple sclerosis (MS) and people diagnosed with the disease at a younger age are more likely to have a benign course of MS, remaining fully functional for decades after disease onset, according to researchers at the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in New York. Disease modifying drugs were also found…

Low-quality unauthorized generic versions of approved multiple sclerosis (MS) drugs can expose patients to danger, both through their toxic properties and a lack of efficacy that allows the disease to progress, researchers reported in the study, “Clinical implications for substandard, nonproprietary medicines in multiple sclerosis: focus on fingolimod,” published…

Patients with relapsing multiple sclerosis (MS) are being recruited for a clinical trial evaluating an experimental monoclonal antibody called ublituximab, the National MS Society announced in a recent news release. The study, being conducted at seven U.S. sites, will enroll at least 24 patients, but this number can go up to 100. MS is considered to be…

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany recently announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has accepted for review the Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) of the company’s investigational product Cladribine Tablets as a therapy for relapsing multiple sclerosis (RMS) in Europe. Cladribine is a synthetic antineoplastic agent able to suppress the immune system, causing relatively few…

A research project that aims to explore how astrocytes can be manipulated to stop or prevent neurodegeneration has received a grant from the National Stem Cell Foundation (NSCF). The project will be conducted by the The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) Research Institute. The work developed by Dr. Valentina…

Do you have any strong feelings about worms? No, not earthworms you find in the garden, or even roundworms or tapeworms that can sometimes be found in animals and humans. What I am talking about is purposely being infected with parasitic worms. OK, it may not be as gross as…

Quite a mixed bag in the pick of the week’s news: A drug in development, microbiota in the gut, statins and MS, DMTs and cognitive skills, and images of depression. Endece Granted New U.S. Patent for NDC-1308, Therapy to Induce Remyelination in MS This is a bit of an…

The Institute of Clinical and Economic Review (ICER), the nonprofit organization that released a preliminary draft last week intended to shape the Institute’s forthcoming report on the effectiveness and benefits of therapies for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), is made up of experts in healthcare policy from across the U.S. who, through the…

Oral therapy Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) seems to be emerging as a first-line treatment for relapsing multiple sclerosis – according to Biogen, the company that developed it. That’s good news, and something we need to know. The company agrees that for some time, the long-term effectiveness and safety of this oral…

A recent study in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry and Toxicology reported that the impact of disease-causing free radicals on the human body may be mitigated by wearing special, high-tech “Nanobionic” clothing for just a few hours a day. These clothes are designed to protect the body from…

A link indeed appears to exist between multiple sclerosis (MS) and unusual changes in the bacterial composition of the gut, according to researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). In their study, “Alterations of the human gut microbiome in multiple sclerosis,” published in the journal Nature Communications,…

Endece was recently issued an additional U.S. patent for its lead investigational product, NDC-1308, being developed to induce remyelination in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and prevent disease progression. Currently in late preclinical development, NDC-1308 is designed to repair the myelin sheath of demyelinated axons (nerve fibers), a major cause…

This chewing gum handout in the exhibit area of the recent Drug Information Association (DIA) 2016 meeting says it all from the pharmaceutical company perspective – recruiting patients for their studies is often a distasteful and difficult process. While I appreciated the gum in this package, this image left a…

A pilot study in patients with progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) found a steroid treatment of benefit by decreasing oxidative stress in the cerebrospinal fluid. The study, “One-time intrathecal triamcinolone acetonide application alters the redox potential in cerebrospinal fluid of progressive multiple sclerosis patients: a pilot study,” was published in the journal …

Disease-modifying therapies, a group of treatments for people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), work to stabilize patients’ cognitive functions just as they do their physical symptoms. Research, conducted over the course of a year, also reported no differences between two types of DMTs, Gilenya (fingolimod) and Tysabri (natalizumab). The study, “…

Inflammation in a brain region called the hippocampus might explain why patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) suffer from depression far more often than patients with other chronic brain diseases. The findings, described in the report “Hippocampal Neuroinflammation, Functional Connectivity, and Depressive Symptoms in Multiple Sclerosis,” published in the…

When I see a new drug for MS come to market, I only think of the company behind that product – it could be one of the big names such as Genentech, Genzyme, EMD Serono, Biogen, or one of the many other players in the field.  I never stopped to…

Fecal samples from a group of people with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) showed evidence of a different gut microbiota than that found in healthy controls, and may be a non-genetic reason for the altered immune system responses seen in MS patients. The study, “Multiple sclerosis patients have…

One of the world’s most commonly used medications — the cholesterol-lowering drug simvastatin — was found to affect the immune system in a way that can be explored to treat inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS). Researchers have earlier noted that simvastatin, a cholesterol-lowering drug, is beneficial for MS…

Opinions voiced by multiple sclerosis (MS) patients as to what they most want from, and like in, an MS treatment differ widely, although delaying progression and relapses — and minimizing serious side effects — clearly score high, according to new research from the University of British Columbia in Canada. The study, “Quantitative…

Detecting brain atrophy in multiple sclerosis (MS) patients requires high quality scans, too expensive and complicated for routine clinical use. But this may change with a new software that simplifies the calculation of brain atrophy based on data from routine magnetic resonance images (MRI). The new tool and its benefits were recently described…

Biogen and AbbVie announced that the drug Zinbryta (daclizumab) has received marketing authorization by the European Commission, and is an approved treatment across most of Europe for adults with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Zinbryta is a self-administered, once monthly subcutaneous injection. “Clinical data showed Zinbryta significantly reduced relapses, 24-week…

The Institute of Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) released the early draft of a paper intended to inform a future report evaluating the effectiveness and value of disease-modifying therapies for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). The paper, called a draft scoping document, is titled “Disease Modifying Therapies for Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis: Effectiveness and…

Disabling tremors can affect as many as half of all people with multiple sclerosis (MS), but they are inadequately treated because of limited therapeutic options and are not sufficiently being studied, researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham reported. Their report, “Symptomatic Management of Multiple Sclerosis-Associated Tremor Among…

A few months ago I had the honor of meeting David Lacks, a grandson of Henrietta Lacks. It was at a large meeting and not everyone in the room understood his link to our medical care; the people who already knew about grandmother had most probably read the book…

Developments of treatments for MS dominate my pick of the week’s news in MS News Today. Included is a vaccine and a new oral drug. Vaccine to Treat Multiple Sclerosis Showing Promise and Soon to Enter Phase 3 Clinical Testing This is something a bit different because, usually vaccines are designed to…

Since its approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2013, Tecfidera (dimethyl fumarate) has emerged as a first-line treatment for relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), the most common form of multiple sclerosis (MS). While two separate clinical trials demonstrated Tecfidera’s ability to significantly reduce both the rate of relapse…