Naked Science Forum

Life Sciences => Physiology & Medicine => Topic started by: thedoc on 10/10/2013 11:01:18

Title: Can demyelination due to multiple sclerosis be reversed?
Post by: thedoc on 10/10/2013 11:01:18

A drug that can reverse the damage done by the disease MS (multiple sclerosis) has been discovered by US scientists.

Read the whole story on our  website by clicking here (http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HTML/news/news/1000341/)

  

Title: Re: Can demyelination due to multiple sclerosis be reversed?
Post by: simonbishop on 10/10/2013 13:14:33

This is a really interesting study. Previous approaches attempted to halt damage to nerves by the immune system - almost damage limitation. But this is an effort to restore oligodendrocyte differentiation and thereby myelin maintenance to halt damage and potentially repair it. Fascinating stuff.

Title: Re: Can demyelination due to multiple sclerosis be reversed?
Post by: Skyli on 10/10/2013 13:43:51

Great news. If this turns into a viable MS treatment, what sort of time-to-market could we expect, considering that it would be based on a well understood drug?

Title: Re: Can demyelination due to multiple sclerosis be reversed?
Post by: simonbishop on 10/10/2013 15:25:15

I suspect it would have to be in trials for a long time. Benzatropine has many side effects as well as its use in Parkinsons. The study says they are looking into other drugs and chemicals that remyelinate nerves, possibly by a completely different mechanism - perhaps they might find something in there that has fewer side effects and could come to market quicker?

Title: Re: Can demyelination due to multiple sclerosis be reversed?
Post by: chris on 13/10/2013 11:13:40

In all likelihood, this is in trials already; the publication cycle is always behind what's actually happening on the ground. I suspect that they'll run a multi-way trial looking at a combination of immunosuppressant, benztropine and benztropine/immunosuppressant interventions. The paper hints at this at the end where it shows that lower doses of both in combination achieves the same benefits as intense immunosuppression alone, but without the obvious side effects of heavy immune suppression.

I will be interested to see what the people who have been doing the Campath trials make of this. Here is the link to an interview Alistair Coles gave me in 2008 on what they were finding: http://www.thenakedscientists.com/HTML/content/interviews/interview/1012/

Title: Re: Can demyelination due to multiple sclerosis be reversed?
Post by: Skyli on 14/10/2013 14:43:50

Thank you Chris; a very interesting article.

Does anybody know what the status of CamPath is at the moment?