DiscoveR8 - News for Life Science

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Bayer drug delays MS in half of patients-MRI study

sea-maid submitted, created time 2 weeks 6 days (www.alertnet.org)

A long-term study of brain scans in multiple sclerosis patients showed only about half of the patients who took the drug interferon beta 1-b got a long-lasting benefit, U.S. researchers said on Monday.

Patients in the small, three-year study were treated with the Bayer drug, which is sold under the trade name Betaseron in the United States or Betaferon elsewhere.

The drug is designed to reduce the number of disease flareups.

Multiple sclerosis occurs when the immune system attacks the myelin sheath protecting nerve cells. It affects 2

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Therapeutic application of histone deacetylase inhibitors for central nervous system disorders

sea-maid submitted, created time 1 month 1 week (www.nature.com)

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) — enzymes that affect the acetylation status of histones and other important cellular proteins — have been recognized as potentially useful therapeutic targets for a broad range of human disorders. Pharmacological manipulations using small-molecule HDAC inhibitors — which may restore transcriptional balance to neurons, modulate cytoskeletal function, affect immune responses and enhance protein degradation pathways — have been beneficial in various experimental models of brain diseases

5

Therapeutic application of histone deacetylase inhibitors for central nervous system disorder

jerry submitted, created time 1 month 1 week (www.nature.com)

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) — enzymes that affect the acetylation status of histones and other important cellular proteins — have been recognized as potentially useful therapeutic targets for a broad range of human disorders. Pharmacological manipulations using small-molecule HDAC inhibitors — which may restore transcriptional balance to neurons, modulate cytoskeletal function, affect immune responses and enhance protein degradation pathways — have been beneficial in various experimental models of brain diseases

7

Link Between Vitamin D And Multiple Sclerosis

kavin submitted, created time 2 months 3 weeks (www.medicalnewstoday.com)

Vitamin D, the principal regulator of calcium in the body, may prevent the production of malignant cells such as breast and prostate cancer cells and protect against specific autoimmune disorders including multiple sclerosis (MS) according to an article by Sylvia Christakos, PhD, of the UMDNJ-New Jersey Medical School.

In the article, Christakos reports that research shows that the incidence of MS decreases as the amount of vitamin D available to the body increases, either through sunlight exposure or diet

7

Krox20–Nab2 Interactions in Myelination

kavin submitted, created time 5 months 3 weeks (www.jneurosci.org)

To study the mechanisms underlying myelination, Desmazieres et al. produced transgenic mice that express a mutant form of Krox20 that causes congenital hypomyelinating neuropathy in humans: a mutation that causes a single amino acid substitution, which disrupts interaction between Krox20 and its cofactor Nab2. Interactions between Krox20 and Nab2 appear essential for Krox20 function in peripheral myelination, but not in hindbrain patterning.

7

Interferon-Beta: Mode of Action in EAE

jerry submitted, created time 6 months 4 days (www.immunity.com)

Interferon-β (IFN-β) is widely used in the treatment of multiple sclerosis. However, the underlying molecular mechanism of how it suppresses autoimmunity in the central nervous system is unknown. Researchers find that IFN-β in the brain acts primarily on myeloid cells such as macrophages and microglia to suppress inflammation by blocking several important functions

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Multiple sclerosis patients will get new vaccine

Paradise submitted, created time 1 year 3 months (www.reutershealth.com)

An experimental vaccine against multiple sclerosis (MS) appears to be safe and may produce beneficial changes in patients' brains and immune systems, Canadian researchers reported on Monday.

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Risk Alleles for Multiple Sclerosis Identified by a Genomewide Study

Cindy submitted, created time 1 year 3 months (content.nejm.org)

Multiple sclerosis has a clinically significant heritable component. We conducted a genomewide association study to identify alleles associated with the risk of multiple sclerosis. We used DNA microarray technology to identify common DNA sequence variants in 931 family trios (consisting of an affected child and both parents) and tested them for association. Trough the test, they find Alleles of IL2RA and IL7RA and those in the HLA locus are identified as heritable risk factors for multiple sclerosis.

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Risk genes for multiple sclerosis uncovered

bianjie submitted, created time 1 year 4 months (www.eurekalert.org)

Using a whole-genome association scan, an international consortium of scientists has found genetic variations in multiple sclerosis patients, findings that suggest a possible link between MS and other autoimmune diseases.

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Antibody linked to MS significantly higher in spinal fluid of blacks

bianjie submitted, created time 1 year 4 months (www.eurekalert.org)

An antibody frequently used as a diagnostic marker for multiple sclerosis is present at greater levels in the cerebrospinal fluid of blacks with MS than Caucasians with the disease.
National Institutes of Health, National Multiple Sclerosis Society

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Natalizumab for Multiple Sclerosis

cappuccion submitted, created time 1 year 5 months (content.nejm.org)

A discussion of the clinical problem and the mechanism of benefit of this form of therapy follows. Major clinical studies, the clinical use of this therapy, and potential adverse effects are reviewed. Relevant formal guidelines, if they exist, are presented. The article ends with the author's clinical recommendations.

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Autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation fails to stop demyelination and neurodegeneration in multiple sclerosis

julie submitted, created time 1 year 6 months (brain.oxfordjournals.org)

"The present study analyses autopsy material from five multiple sclerosis patients who received autologous stem cell transplantation. A total of 53 white matter lesions were investigated using routine and immunohistochemical stainings to characterize the demyelinating activity, inflammatory infiltrates, acutely damaged axons and macrophages/microglial cells. We found evidence for ongoing active demyelination in all of the five patients. The inflammatory infiltrate within the lesions showed only very few T cells and CD8+ cytotoxic T cells dominated the T cell population

6

Small study finds testosterone helps MS patients

medal submitted, created time 1 year 6 months (www.reuters.com)

" A testosterone gel slowed brain deterioration and boosted thinking ability in men with multiple sclerosis, according to a small study showing a possible new way to treat the incurable disease."

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Vaporization provides safer delivery for medical marijuana

Darkfrog submitted, created time 1 year 6 months (www.nature.com)

Marijuana is used as a painkiller, appetite stimulant and nausea suppressant in patients with glaucoma, AIDS, MS and who are on chemotherapy, but smoking introduces harmful carcinogens and ingestion can degrade the active components. Still, I'm somehow not surprised that this study comes out of UC San Francisco.

Vaporization works on several other whole-plant substances. I heard that a company or two was working on an insulin inhaler for a while, but I don't think they had much luck.

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Loss of aquaporin 4 in lesions of neuromyelitis optica: distinction from multiple sclerosis

julie submitted, created time 1 year 6 months (brain.oxfordjournals.org)

”The present study demonstrated that the immunoreactivities of AQP4 and GFAP were consistently lost from the early stage of the lesions in NMO, notably in the perivascular regions with complement and immunoglobulin deposition. These features in NMO were distinct from those of MS and infarction as well as normal controls, and suggest that astrocytic impairment associated with the loss of AQP4 and humoral immunity may be important in the pathogenesis of NMO lesions. "