New drug shows promise against multiple sclerosis

An experimental drug called Ocrelizumab has shown promise in a Phase 2 clinical trial involving 220 people with multiple sclerosis (MS), an often debilitating, chronic autoimmune disease that affects an increasing number of people in North America. It usually strikes young adults and is more common in women than in men.

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Natural intestinal flora involved in the emergence of multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. For a long time, pathogens were believed to be such external influences. According to scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried, however, it is apparently not harmful bacteria that trigger multiple sclerosis, but beneficial ones – specifically, the natural intestinal flora, which every human being needs for digestion. The researchers discovered that genetically modified mice develop an inflammation in the brain similar to the human disease if they have normal bacterial intestinal flora. The microorganisms begin by activating the immune system’s T cells and, in a further step, the B immune cells. The findings suggest that in humans with the corresponding genetic predisposition, the essentially beneficial intestinal flora could act as a trigger for the development of multiple sclerosis.

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Advance toward a breath test to diagnose multiple sclerosis

Scientists are reporting the development and successful tests in humans of a sensor array that can diagnose multiple sclerosis (MS) from exhaled breath, an advance that they describe as a landmark in the long search for a fast, inexpensive and non-invasive test for MS — the most common neurological disease in young adults. Their report appears in the journal ACS Chemical Neuroscience.

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Medical researchers ID potential new drug target that could stop debilitating effects of MS

Medical researchers at the University of Alberta have discovered a potential new drug target for Multiple Sclerosis that could prevent physical disability associated with the disease, once a new drug is developed.

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Precision with stem cells a step forward for treating MS, other diseases

Scientists have improved upon their own previous world-best efforts to pluck out just the right stem cells to address the brain problem at the core of multiple sclerosis and a large number of rare, fatal children’s diseases.

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New oral drug found to reduce relapses in multiple sclerosis patients

A new oral drug has been shown in a large international clinical trial to significantly reduce the relapse rate of people with multiple sclerosis and to slow the progression of the disease.

The results of the Phase 3 trial of the drug teriflunomide were published in The New England Journal of Medicine on Thursday.

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Glucosamine-like supplement suppresses multiple sclerosis attacks

A glucosamine-like dietary supplement suppresses the damaging autoimmune response seen in multiple sclerosis, according to a UC Irvine study.

UCI’s Dr. Michael Demetriou, Ani Grigorian and others found that oral N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc), which is similar to but more effective than the widely available glucosamine, inhibited the growth and function of abnormal T-cells that in MS incorrectly direct the immune system to attack and break down central nervous system tissue that insulates nerves.

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Cleveland researchers collaborate to launch Phase 1 clinical trial for new MS treatment

New study is the first North American clinical trial to test adult mesenchymal stem cell transplantation as a new therapy for MS

A team of researchers at three landmark Cleveland institutions have come together to launch a new clinical trial of an experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS). Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center, and Case Western Reserve University are collaborating on a ground-breaking study that will test the feasibility and safety of using the body’s own stem cells to treat MS.

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Multiple sclerosis research doubles number of genes associated with the disease

Critical insight provided into the disease mechanisms behind multiple sclerosis

Scientists have identified 29 new genetic variants linked to multiple sclerosis, providing key insights into the biology of a very debilitating neurological disease. Many of the genes ¬implicated in the study are relevant to the immune system, shedding light onto the immunological pathways that underlie the development of multiple sclerosis.

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New nanoscale imaging may lead to new treatments for multiple sclerosis

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) –– Laboratory studies by chemical engineers at UC Santa Barbara may lead to new experimental methods for early detection and diagnosis –– and to possible treatments –– for pathological tissues that are precursors to multiple sclerosis and similar diseases.

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