treatment

Nine research teams at the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech will be awarded grants totaling $550,000 for studies addressing issues related to brain development and brain function in health and disease. Among the university-funded projects receiving between $50,000 and $70,000 each is research into potential new treatments for multiple sclerosis. “We are planting seeds that…

Scientists at the University of Buffalo have identified a critical step in the process of nerve myelination after birth, a discovery that holds promise for the development of more effective therapies for neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). The research involved the study of voltage-operated calcium channels, which initiate many physiological…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted Bayer’s filing of a supplemental biologics license application (sBLA) for two products designed to improve the lives of people with multiple sclerosis (MS): myBETAapp and the BETACONNECT Navigator. Bayer created the BETACONNECT system to increase patient treatment compliance and improve…

Last week, I introduced you to Phoebe Scopes, the very first MS patient from another country to undergo hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) in Moscow. Today, in Part 2,  we pick up the story of the 46-year-old who lives in London. Ian: So, you had done lots of research. How…

Promising data from a small Phase 2a clinical trial sponsored by RedHill Biopharma for an antibiotic designed to fight certain infections suggests that adding the drug candidate to interferon treatment reduced relapse rates and brain lesion formation in patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). This novel treatment approach was based on…

I’ll admit I was nervous as I sat in the infusion chair for Day 1 of Round 1 of my Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) infusions. I’d read a lot, and talked with my neurologist a lot, about the drug. I knew the benefits of Lemtrada could be great. My multiple sclerosis…

Health Canada has approved Zinbryta (daclizumab) as a treatment for adults with active relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), Biogen and AbbVie announced. Zinbryta is a long-acting injection therapy, self-administered monthly, for patients who have had an inadequate response to at least two other MS therapies. “ZINBRYTA™ is the first once-monthly, self-administered treatment…

A specific type of channel that facilitates calcium flow is needed for normal development of cells that produce a shield, called myelin, around nerve fibers — a finding that could open up new approaches to regenerating the myelin-producing cells (called oligodendrocytes) lost in multiple sclerosis (MS). Researchers now hope to…

Scientists unraveled the 3-D structure of a key receptor linked to inflammation in multiple sclerosis (MS) — the CC chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) receptor — when it is bound to two inhibitor molecules simultaneously. This potentially important finding, which allows scientists to see how these molecules fit together, could aid in developing better therapeutics that…

Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients now taking part in a Phase 2b clinical trial testing the efficacy and safety of the antibody GNbAC1 will be invited to continue with treatment for two more years under a planned extension study, the biopharmaceutical companies GeNeuro and Servier recently announced. Several MS therapies rely on the capacity of antibodies to…

Here we go. This is the week my Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) infusions begin. A few weeks ago I wrote about how Lemtrada has been successful in stopping disease progression in folks with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis, and those who have transitioned to secondary progressive MS but continue to have relapses. There have…

The Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) is inviting researchers and healthcare professionals to submit abstracts to be presented at its 31st Annual Meeting, focusing on developments in multiple sclerosis (MS) research, patient care and treatment outcomes. The 2017 CMSC meeting, organized by the group’s Continuing Professional Education Committee, will take…

In a new and possibly important insight into the workings of the immune system, researchers discovered what it takes for T-cells to start targeting myelin sheets in multiple sclerosis (MS). The findings may also explain why some drugs fail to prevent autoimmunity in MS. The study, “Trans-presentation…

Here is my Pick of the Week’s news, as published in Multiple Sclerosis News Today. UV Light May Lead Way to New Treatment for MS and Inflammation Now this might be exciting, if turns out that ultraviolet light can truly be the basis of new treatments that…

A hormonal system that controls blood pressure was also seen to counter inflammatory processes in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS) by influencing immune cells to take on a more anti-inflammatory profile. Researchers believe that it might be possible to manipulate the system with drugs, so as to boost anti-inflammatory…

A new ways of delivering drug therapies directly to the brain, overcoming the limitation imposed by the blood-brain barrier (a permeable barrier that protects the brain), has been discovered. The technique — which makes use of lipid bubbles and ultrasound — may pave the way for new treatments against neurological disorders,…

Data from the CARE-MS II clinical trial showed that Lemtrada (alemtuzumab) can lessen pre-existing disabilities in patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) who failed to respond adequately to previous disease-modifying therapies, according to a study of the trial’s data. The treatment was evaluated against Rebif (interferon beta-1a) therapy. The study, “Alemtuzumab…

The Institute for Clinical and Economic Review (ICER) has released a Draft Evidence Report evaluating the comparative clinical effectiveness and value of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) for patients with relapsing-remitting and primary-progressive forms of multiple sclerosis (MS). Through Dec. 21, patients, the public, and other stakeholders can access the 82-page report and…

A molecule secreted by a parasite was seen to prevent autoimmune reactions in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS). As this molecule, a protein factor or peptide, also worked to prevent diabetes, researchers suggest it might be developed into a potential treatment for autoimmune diseases. The study, “A parasite-derived 68-mer peptide ameliorates…

Researchers have found neural stem cells (immature cells that can become neurons) in the meninges of the brain, a three-layer structure that protects the nervous system, according to results of a new study. The discovery of this pool of stem cells in the adult brain opens new possibilities for the…

Royal Philips recently announced the introduction of the IntelliSpace Portal 9.0, the latest edition of its advanced comprehensive visual analysis and quantification platform for neurological disorders. The platform was presented at the 2016 Radiological Society of North America Annual Meeting (RSNA), taking place through Dec. 2 in Chicago. Currently a work in…

Researchers have found a way to harness inflammation with the help of ultraviolet (UV) light, making it possible to design an anti-inflammatory treatment that is more specific and causes fewer side effects. If this approach can be developed for clinical treatment, it likely will have a large impact on the lives of people with…

Sutter Health, a not-for-profit healthcare network serving more than 100 northern California communities, has been awarded $1.2 million by the California Initiative to Advance Precision Medicine (CIAPM) to support patients living with multiple sclerosis (MS) and help improve how health matters are targeted and treated across the entire state.

A recent study published in Nature Communications showed, for the first time, that a protein complex called LUBAC is responsible for controlling the late-stage development of immune T-cells before they are released into the bloodstream. Several types of cells compose the immune system, working together to fight infections or cancer.

Dr. Rebecca Coll, a young researcher at the University of Queensland Institute of Molecular Bioscience, won the 2016 Research Australia Discovery Award for her work in identifying promising anti-inflammatory compounds that are able to block the NLRP3 inflammasome — a key driver of inflammation. The discovery could greatly benefit patients with inflammatory diseases,…

Magenta Therapeutics has completed its first round of financing, raising $48.5 million to develop ways of bringing bone marrow stem cell transplants to more patients with autoimmune diseases, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), among other illnesses. The new company aims to develop the first complete platform that can overcome the challenges in stem cell transplants,…

Chronic diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS) not only impact patients, they also inspire fear among healthy people who may be at risk of the disease. In a new study, researchers found that the availability of multiple sclerosis (MS) therapies provides “peace of mind” value to currently healthy individuals, particularly when…

In general, patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) choose their disease-modifying drug (DMD) treatment based on considerations of effectiveness and potential side effects. But the weight they assign to these considerations can differ widely, making it important they are part of treatment decisions, especially regarding DMDs. These findings are in the report, “Identification and…

Despite recent studies showing that treatment with Ampyra (Fampyra in Europe; fampridine) improves both walking speed and ability, and offers psychological benefits to patients with multiple sclerosis (MS), the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) recently decided to not recommend the drug for use on the National Health Service (NHS) in Scotland.

In multiple sclerosis (MS) patients who do not respond to interferon-beta treatment, autoimmunity may depend on processes that differ from patients helped by this treatment— a finding that could lead both to better therapies and tests that predict a patient’s likely response. The study, “An interferon-β-resistant and NLRP3…