Myelin News and Research

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Myelin is the fatty substance that covers and protects nerves.

New imaging method could better assess extent of nerve damage

A new imaging technique could help doctors and researchers more accurately assess the extent of nerve damage and healing in a live patient. Researchers at Laval University in Qu-bec and Harvard Medical School in Boston aimed lasers at rats' damaged sciatic nerves to create images of the individual neurons' insulating sheath called myelin.

14 Sep 2011

Scientists discover 29 new genetic variants linked with MS

Multiple sclerosis is primarily an immunological disease. Scientists at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) have in succeeded, in collaboration with 23 research teams from 15 different countries, in discovering a total of 29 new genetic variants that are involved in the genesis of multiple sclerosis (MS), an inflammatory disease of the nervous system.

7 Sep 2011

Inhibiting the ability of immune cells to use fatty acids slows MS progression

In a paper published today in the journal Scientific Reports, a pair of researchers at the University of California, San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences report that inhibiting the ability of immune cells to use fatty acids as fuel measurably slows disease progression in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis.

3 Sep 2011

First North American clinical trial to test adult MSC transplantation as a new MS therapy

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.

24 Aug 2011

Scientists identify 29 new genetic variants linked to 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.

11 Aug 2011

Acorda Therapeutics receives U.S. patent allowance for aminopyridine compositions

Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. today announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has allowed U.S. Patent Application No. 11/102,559 entitled "Method of Using Sustained Release Aminopyridine Compositions."

10 Aug 2011

New technique can help scientists rapidly map myelination

Like explorers mapping a new planet, scientists probing the brain need every type of landmark they can get. Each mountain, river or forest helps scientists find their way through the intricacies of the human brain.

10 Aug 2011

Biogen Idec's FAMPYRA receives EU conditional approval for treating functional impairment in MS

Biogen Idec announced today it has received conditional approval from the European Commission for FAMPYRA® (prolonged-release fampridine tablets) to improve walking in adult patients with multiple sclerosis who have walking disability.

25 Jul 2011

Myelin regulates key protein involved in sending long-distance signals

The development of a new cell-culture system that mimics how specific nerve cell fibers in the brain become coated with protective myelin opens up new avenues of research about multiple sclerosis. Initial findings suggest that myelin regulates a key protein involved in sending long-distance signals.

22 Jul 2011

Rush scientist receives NIH grant to evaluate whether cinnamon may treat MS

A neurological scientist at Rush University Medical Center has received a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to evaluate whether cinnamon, a common food spice and flavoring material, may stop the destructive process of multiple sclerosis.

23 Jun 2011

Scientists discover three susceptibility genes for development of progressive supranuclear palsy

An international research team, co-led by scientists at Mayo Clinic's campus in Florida, have discovered three potential susceptibility genes for development of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), a rare neurodegenerative disease that causes symptoms similar to those of Parkinson's disease but is resistant to Parkinson's medications.

20 Jun 2011

New insight into progressive supranuclear palsy

There are new genetic clues on risk factors and biological causes of a rare neurodegenerative disease called progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), according to a new study from an international genetics team led by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

20 Jun 2011

AMPYRA ER Tablets improve walking ability in patients with multiple sclerosis

Acorda Therapeutics, Inc. today announced an analysis of pooled clinical trial results showed patients who were responders to AMPYRA (dalfampridine) Extended Release Tablets, 10 mg demonstrated clinically relevant improvements in walking ability as measured by patient self-report on the 12-Item Multiple Sclerosis Walking Scale (MSWS-12), regardless of either their baseline Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) score or baseline walking speed.

7 Jun 2011

Brown University researchers develop 2-D maps of neural circuitry in human brain

Medical imaging systems allow neurologists to summon 3-D color renditions of the brain at a moment's notice, yielding valuable insights. But sometimes there can be too much detail; important elements can go unnoticed.

4 Jun 2011

RegeneRx Thymosin beta 4 stimulates maturation of central nervous system progenitor cells

RegeneRx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that researchers have found that Thymosin beta 4 (Tβ4), in a dose dependent manner, stimulates oligodendrogenesis, the process by which central nervous system progenitor cells become oligodendrocytes that secrete myelin, the covering of nerve fibers.

2 Jun 2011

Vitamin D levels low in African Americans with multiple sclerosis

In the first major study exploring the connection between vitamin D and multiple sclerosis in African Americans, a team of scientists at the University of California, San Francisco has discovered that vitamin D levels in the blood are lower in African Americans who have the disease, compared to African Americans who do not.

30 May 2011

Biogen Idec joins global multiple sclerosis community to celebrate third annual World MS Day

Today, Biogen Idec will join the global multiple sclerosis (MS) community in celebrating the third annual World MS Day. Biogen Idec continues to be the industry leader in researching and providing groundbreaking therapies for MS. So far in 2011, the company has brought more hope to MS patients through a number of significant milestones.

25 May 2011

Nanoscopic findings may lead to new experimental methods for early multiple sclerosis diagnosis

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.

24 May 2011

EMA CHMP recommends conditional marketing authorization of FAMPYRA

The Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use of the European Medicine Agency has recommended conditional marketing authorization of FAMPYRA (prolonged-release fampridine 10 mg tablets) for the improvement of walking in adult patients with multiple sclerosis with walking disability.

20 May 2011

New method for mapping myelin sheaths of nerve cells

Researchers including members from the Niels Bohr Institute at the University of Copenhagen have developed a new method for making detailed X-ray images of brain cells.

13 May 2011