August 12, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Anti-CD20 Therapies Help Mount T-cell Response to COVID-19 Vaccines People with multiple sclerosis (MS) who are on therapies that deplete antibody-producing B-cells can mount an effective T-cell immune response to COVID-19 vaccination, a new study shows. The findings suggest that the vaccines strongly activate other parts of the immune system that are helpful in fighting the virus,…
February 1, 2022 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Study: DNA Methylation in T-cells Affected by MS and Its Treatments Multiple sclerosis (MS) is characterized by changes in methylation ā a type of chemical modification in the DNA that changes how genes are read ā in immune cells called T-cells, according to a new study. The results also suggest that treatments for MS can help to normalize methylation…
October 27, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Cold Eases Inflammation, Disease Severity in MS Mouse Model Colder ambient temperatures may ease the inflammation that drives multiple sclerosis (MS), early research in a mouse model suggests. Animals whose environment for two weeks was set at 10 C (about 50 F) had a “pronounced attenuation” of disease severity and other benefits compared with those kept at a…
October 19, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS #ECTRIMS2021 ā CD20-positive T-cells May Be Early Drivers of MS Editorās note: TheĀ Multiple Sclerosis News Today team is providing in-depth coverage of the virtual 37th Congress of the European Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS), Oct. 13ā15. GoĀ here to see the latest stories from the conference. Certain types of…
September 17, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Patients on Anti-CD20 Therapies Urged to Get COVID-19 Vaccine While people with multiple sclerosis (MS) taking anti-CD20 therapies do not mount a robust antibody response after getting vaccinated against COVID-19, the vaccines do strongly activate other parts of the immune system that are likely to be helpful in fighting the virus, a new study shows. “The message…
June 16, 2021 News by Marisa Wexler, MS Data on T-cell Repertoire May Help in Understanding MS Development T-cells in the fluid around the brain share a large percentage of receptors among different multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, a new report suggests. Better understanding the diversity of T-cell receptors in MS, and how these cells vary in different parts of the body, could be useful in understanding the…
April 5, 2018 Columns by Tamara Sellman The MS Alphabet: TENS, T-Cells, Tinnitus, and Other ‘T’ Words Editorās note: Tamara Sellman continues her series on the “MS alphabet” with this column referencing terms starting with the letter “T.” Symptoms of MS Tinnitus You may already know this as “ringing in the ears.” But ringing as a descriptor is a bit subjective, as tinnitus…
January 12, 2018 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Atara to Extend Phase 1 Trial of Potential Immunotherapy for All MS Forms to US Patients Atara Biotherapeutics has received a green light to enroll U.S. patients into a Phase 1 trial of ATA188 for progressive or relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). The study was initially launched in Australia, but with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) having cleared the companyās application, the trial…
March 30, 2016 News by Margarida Azevedo, MSc Oral MS Drug Derived from Plant Peptide Seen to Stop Disease Progression in Mice Researchers, working with an animal model of multiple sclerosis (MS), discovered that oral treatment with a synthesized plant peptide, known as cyclotide, halted the progression of clinical symptoms without side effects. The findingĀ offers new hope for the development of an easily available and orally deliverable treatment that mightĀ slow or even…
November 25, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Opexa Therapeutics’ MS Therapy Selected as ‘Top Project to Watch’ Opexa TherapeuticsĀ announced that it has been named one of theĀ āTop Projects to WatchāĀ for the third consecutive year. A panel of independent experts recognized the biopharmaceutical company for its work in the development of personalized immunotherapies for autoimmune disorders, such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and neuromyelitis optica (NMO). Opexa was…
June 4, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Another Study Focused on Stem Cells and Autoimmune Diseases Shows Promise 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…
May 15, 2015 News by Patricia Silva, PhD Yale and MIT Researchers Discover a Key Immune Difference in Multiple Sclerosis Patients 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 āFunctional inflammatory profiles distinguish myelin-reactive T cells from patients with multiple sclerosisā and…