New Control System of The Body

Researchers have recently discovered a new control system in the body that may help control the inflammation caused by an attack of the immune systems. Researchers from Berlin, Germany have been able to lessen the inflammation in the brain of mice that was caused by the immune cells. The researchers have discovered that a receptor found on the surface of T cells in the central nervous system seems to play a key role.

A receptor called the bradykin receptor 1, also simply known as B1, seems to control that infiltration of the immune cells into the central nervous system. The...

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New Study Shows Out-Of-Pocket Costs Hamper MS Patient Treatments

A new study conducted by pharmacy benefits manager Prime Therapeutics found out that the high out-of-pocket costs are making one out of four MS patients fail to fill out their proscription forms. The study found out that MS patients dealing with out-of-pocket expenses amounting to more than $250 are around seven times more likely not to fill out prescription forms for their condition as compared to MS patients with out-of-pocket costs of $100 or less.

According to Patrick Gleason, PharmD, FCCP, BCPS, the lead author and Director of Clinical Outcomes Assessment at Prime Therapeutics, "Our research suggests...

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Breastfeeding Mothers with MS Experience Lesser Relapse Risk

A study recently posted only indicated that women with multiple sclerosis who breastfed exclusively for at least two months are less likely to experience a relapse within a year after childbirth.

The said study, which was headed by Annette Langer-Gould, MD PhD and formerly of Stanford University School of Medicine but now at the Kaiser Permanente Southern California in Pasadena, together with colleagues studied two groups of pregnant women, 32 of which had multiple sclerosis and 29 who did not.

Both groups, who belong to the same age group were individually interviewed about their clinical, menstrual and breastfeeding history during...

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Diabetes Drug Shows Promise Treating MS

A drug known for treating type 2 diabetes has also been found to be a promising candidate for use in treating multiple sclerosis. The drug pioglitazone has shown in clinical trials that it has some protective effects on the brains of patients suffering from relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis.

The researchers at the University of Illinois at the Chicago College of Medicine conducted a double blinded clinical trial on MS patients. The trial involved giving the patients either pioglitazone or a placebo. The said patients still continued their normal course of therapy for the duration of the clinical trial.

Initial standard...

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Statins May Impact MS Treatment

Statins are currently being used to help treat people with high cholesterol levels. Statins have been proven to effectively help lower blood cholesterol especially when used regularly. But it seems that statin treatment in high dosage may have a negative effect on people with multiple sclerosis.

A study on mice done by researchers at the Montreal Neurological Institute found out that statin therapy may actually inhibit remyelination or myelin repair in the central nervous system. The findings were published in the American Journal of Pathology and which highlighted the need to monitor the effects of immune therapies how it may...

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Synthetic Vitamin A Blocks Early MS In Mice

A team of researchers from the National Institute of Neuroscience in Tokyo, Japan has recently found that a synthetic form of vitamin A may be effective in treating the early symptoms of multiple sclerosis in mice. The researchers, led by Dr. Takahashi Yamamura and Dr. Shinji Oki, used the synthetic retinoid called AM80 to treat the early symptoms in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis.

Multiple sclerosis is a type of disease where the immune system mistakenly attacks the central nervous system and damaging the myelin, which acts as the insulating cover for the nerve fibers in the brain and...

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Protein Can Provoke Immune Attack On Cells

Multiple sclerosis is a debilitating condition that is caused by the body's immune system attacking the myelin sheath which acts as a protective insulator for the extensive neurons which acts as a pathway for electrical signals from the brain to the other parts of the body. At least, this is what most of the medical experts assume as the primary cause of multiple sclerosis. But some MS patients have also been known to exhibit certain damage on the brain's gray matter. How extensive the damage is to the gray matter can determine how certain disabilities develop.

Researchers may have found...

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Glutamate Levels Possible MS Predictor

A study conducted by University of California-San Francisco researchers has found a possible correlation between high levels of glutamate in the brain and the progression of multiple sclerosis in patients. The said study is the first to measure levels of glutamate toxicity over time. It also suggested of a more improved method of trying to track the said disease and predicting its possible course. The findings in the study were presented to the American Academy of Neurology during its annual scientific meeting in Seattle last April 29, 2009.

The team conducted measurements of glutamate levels in the brain of the...

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New Pill Helps Reduce MS Relapse

A study by a team of researchers from the University of London reported of a new drug that can dramatically reduce the chances of multiple sclerosis relapses and the further deterioration caused by the said disease. The study showed that taking a set of cladribine tablets a few times annually can help reduce the chances of a relapse among multiple sclerosis patients by as much as 50 percent. The results came from a major trial that has been recently presented at the Annual Meeting of the Academy of Neurology in Seattle.

Multiple sclerosis is a neurological disease that comes as...

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Stem Cells From Fat Tissue Offer Promising MS Treatment

A team of researchers conducted a small preliminary study to demonstrate the possibility of using stem cells obtained from fat tissue in treating auto immune diseases such as multiple sclerosis. Findings so far show promising results with the three case studies described in the Journal of Translational Medicine of BioMed Central. Results may further require the support of clinical evaluation into stromal vascular fraction or SVF cells in multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases.

Thomas Ichim of Medistem Inc. and Dr. Boris Minev from the University of California in San Diego Division of Neurosurgery worked with a team of...

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