Feed aggregator

Will the roundabout stop?.....I am not sure we see the light at the end of the tunnel.  The good and the great have the right idea, but the dots are not joined up!!! Anyway some good ideas but more months wasted ..depressing  [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Meeting the people in power [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Calgarians with multiple sclerosis will no longer have dedicated case managers.

One of world’s most protracted drug-development sagas may draw to a close as French firm Sanofi hopes for European go-ahead for its new medicine Lemtrada

A new study using the Ausimmune cohort has investigated lifestyle habits as risk factors of first demyelinating events, the precursor to MS.

A new Australian study using the Ausimmune cohort has investigated lifestyle habits and blood pressure as risk factors of first clinical demyelinating events – the precursor episode to a definite diagnosis of MS. The Ausimmune study has been running since 2003 with foundation funding from MSRA and the USA National MS Society and has examined a large number of environmental factors and how they might affect risk.

MS treatments, Aubagio (teriflunomide) and Tecfidera (BG-12), and spasticity treatment, Sativex, under PBAC review at July meeting. Comments invited.

The Pharmaceutical Benefit Advisory Committee (PBAC) will consider three new MS medications for listing on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme at their meeting in July. The PBAC is responsible for recommending to the government whether new drugs should be listed for reimbursement on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

Early switching; how important is it? Time matters; time is brain. #MSBlog #MSResearch "The following are my slides from yesterday's debate." Monday, June 10, 2013, Plenary Hall 11:45 – 13:15 Novartis Satellite Symposium: Time matters: early and enduring treatment options in MS 11:45 – 12:10 MS pathology: inflammation and neurodegeneration Chair: Montalban (Barcelona, ES) 12:10 – 12:35 Treatment decisions debate: early vs. late switching. B. Kieseier, G. Giovannoni (Düsseldorf, DE; London, GB) 12:35 – 13:15 Panel discussion: when to switch treatment, T. Vollmer (Colorado, US) "Several very challenging questions came up during the question time that need to be readdressed on this blog. For example, what is benign disease? I personally don't think you make a call on benign disease until the MSer concerned has had the disease for 25 or 30 years. Simply labelling someone as having MS is non-benign. Should we be denying people early active treatment because... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

BG12 or Demethyl fumarate works as well if not better in newly diagnosed MSers. #MSBlog #MSResearch Gold et al. Effect of BG-12 (dimethyl fumarate) in newly diagnosed patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis from the DEFINE and CONFIRM studies. Multiple Sclerosis III: Other Objectives: In Phase 3 clinical trials, BG-12 (dimethyl fumarate) demonstrated consistent clinical and radiological efficacy across a broad range of RRMSer. Here we evaluate the impact of BG-12 on the clinical efficacy in the newly diagnosed RRMS population from the DEFINE and CONFIRM trials.  Methods: MSers included in these post-hoc analyses were diagnosed with RRMS within one year of entry onto DEFINE or CONFIRM and were naive to treatment with a disease-modifying therapy. Treatment efficacy was assessed by annualized relapse rate (ARR) and time to first relapse over 2 years. Annualized relapse rate was analyzed using a negative binomial model, and time to first relapse was analyzed... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Calgarians with multiple sclerosis will no longer have dedicated case managers.

... who are curious about chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCVSI) to "hold ... The theory behind CCSVI is that blocked veins in the head and neck ...Medscape

It's time to grab your rafts and inner tubes and take a relaxing float around Tybee to help in the fight against fight Multiple Sclerosis.

Sunday's end to the Multiple Sclerosis 150-bike ride was an emotional one.

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla., June 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Nutra Pharma Corporation (OTCQB: NPHC), a biotechnology company that is developing treatments for Multiple Sclerosis (MS), Human Immunodeficiency Virus ...

Is the FDA and EMA ready to allow MRI to the center of attention? #MSBlog #MSResearch Is MRI is ready for prime time? #MSBlog #MSResearch Epub: Sormani and Bruzzi. MRI lesions as a surrogate for relapses in multiple sclerosis: a meta-analysis of randomised trials. Lancet Neurol. 2013 Jun 3. BACKGROUND: A meta-analysis of randomised trials in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis published in 2009 showed a quantitative relation between the treatment effects detected on MRI lesions and clinical relapses. Sormani and Bruzzi aimed to validate that relation using data from a large and independent set of clinical trials in MS. METHODS: They searched Medline for clinical trials that assessed disease-modifying drugs for relapsing-remitting MS published from Sept 1, 2008, to Oct 31, 2012. They extracted data for the treatment effects on MRI lesions and on relapses from each trial, and the correlation of log transformed relative measures of these treatment effects was assessed with a... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Epub: Quach et al. CRYAB modulates the activation of CD4+ T cells from relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis patients. Mult Scler. 2013 Jun 4. BACKGROUND: Suppression of activation of pathogenic CD4+ T cells is a potential therapeutic intervention in multiple sclerosis (MS). We previously showed that a small heat shock protein, CRYAB, reduced T cell proliferation, pro-inflammatory cytokine production and clinical signs of experimental allergic encephalomyelitis, a model of MS. OBJECTIVE: We assessed whether the ability of CRYAB to reduce the activation of T cells translated to the human disease. METHODS: CD4+ T cells from healthy controls and volunteers with MS were activated in vitro in the presence or absence of a CRYAB peptide (residues 73-92). Parameters of activation (proliferation rate, cytokine secretion) and tolerance (anergy, activation-induced cell death, microRNAs) were evaluated. RESULTS: The secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines by CD4+ T cells was... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Epub: Lassmann H. Pathology and disease mechanisms in different stages of multiple sclerosis. J Neurol Sci. 2013 Jun 1.  In this review the differences in pathology and disease mechanisms between early and late stages of multiple sclerosis are discussed. The data suggest that affection of the brain is different, depending on the location of lesions, on the stage of the disease, when lesions arise, and on inter-individual differences between patients. We suggest that in the early stage of the disease new lesions are formed by new waves of inflammatory cells, entering the central nervous system from the circulation and giving rise to focal demyelinated plaques in the white and gray matter. In contrast, at late stages of the disease inflammation decreases, but the susceptibility of the target tissue for neurodegeneration increases. New data suggest that mitochondrial injury, mediated through oxidative injury, is in the center of the pathogenetic events leading to... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Hot topic of the ENS; PML risk is low in MSers with low titres of JCV antibody. #MSBlog #MSResearch "The hot topic of the ENS is the following abstract and presentation of PML risk profiling based on your titre or level of antibody to JCV." Plavina et al. Use of JC virus antibody index to stratify risk of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy in natalizumab-treated patients with multiple sclerosis. ENS 2013 Multiple Sclerosis I: Therapeutics Objectives: In MSers treated with natalizumab, the presence of anti-JCV antibodies (JCV Ab+), prior use of immunosuppressants (IS), and increased duration of natalizumab treatment, especially greater than 2 years, are known risk factors for progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML). With polyomaviruses, higher levels of antibodies have been correlated with increased viral burden and increased disease risk. It is not known whether JCV Ab levels correlate with PML risk in natalizumab-treated MSers. The objective of this analysis... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

 #MSResearch Is it jst tosh Epub: Fiddes et al. Confounding underlies the apparent 'month of birth' effect in multiple sclerosis. Ann Neurol. 2013 Jun 6. OBJECTIVE: Several groups have reported apparent association between month of birth and multiple sclerosis. We sought to test the extent to which such studies might be confounded by extraneous variables such as year and place of birth. METHODS: Using national birth statistics from two continents, we assessed the evidence for seasonal variations in birth rate and tested the extent to which these are subject to regional and temporal variation. We then established the age and regional origin distribution for a typical multiple sclerosis case collection and determined the false positive rate expected when comparing such a collection with birth rates estimated by averaging population specific national statistics. RESULTS: We confirm that seasonality in birth rate is ubiquitous and subject to highly significant regional and... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Lin et al. Modulation by Melatonin of the Pathogenesis of Inflammatory Autoimmune Diseases. Int J Mol Sci. 2013;14:11742-11766. Melatonin is the major secretory product of the pineal gland during the night and has multiple activities including the regulation of circadian and seasonal rhythms, and antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. It also possesses the ability to modulate immune responses by regulation of the T helper 1/2 balance and cytokine production. Autoimmune diseases, which result from the activation of immune cells by autoantigens released from normal tissues, affect around 5% of the population. Activation of autoantigen-specific immune cells leads to subsequent damage of target tissues by these activated cells. Melatonin therapy has been investigated in several animal models of autoimmune disease, where it has a beneficial effect in a number of models  Prof Hawkeye form Team G had this idea years ago...Project M......it looks like too much talking and not... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Epub: Scarpazza et al. Education protects against cognitive changes associated with multiple sclerosis. Restor Neurol Neurosci. 2013 Jun 4. Purpose: Although neuropsychological impairments are common in Multiple Sclerosis (MS), the manifestation of cognitive deficits may vary greatly across MS patients. Here, we explored the influence of cognitive reserve proxy indices (education and occupation) and perceived fatigue on cognitive performance.  Methods: Fifty relapsing-remitting MS patients were evaluated. Cognitive performance was measured using the Paced Auditory Serial Addition Test (PASAT), in which information processing speed can be manipulated by varying the presentation speed of stimuli.  Results: MS patients with low education performed worse than healthy controls at faster PASAT speeds. By contrast, no difference was observed between MS patients with high education and matched healthy controls, regardless of PASAT speed. Moreover, we found... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]