Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “SCLEROSIS”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 631 records · Page 35Linked to original sources
PubMed2006

Understanding pathogenesis and therapy of multiple sclerosis via animal models: 70 years of merits and culprits in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis research.

In view of disease heterogeneity of multiple sclerosis and limited access to ex vivo specimens, different approaches must be undertaken to better understand disease pathogenesis and new therapeutic challenges. Here, we critically discuss models of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) that reproduce specific features of the histopathology and neurobiology of multiple sclerosis and their shortcomings as tools to investigate emerging therapeutic approaches. By using EAE models we have understood mechanisms of T-cell mediated immune damage of the CNS, and the associated effector cascade of innate immunity. Also, the importance of humoral components of the immune system for demyelination has been delineated in EAE, before it was applied therapeutically to subtypes of multiple sclerosis. Yet, similar to multiple sclerosis, EAE is also heterogeneous and influenced by the selected autoantigen, species and the genetic background. In particular, the relevance of cytotoxic CD8 T cells for human multiple sclerosis has been underestimated in most EAE models, and no EAE model exists that mimics primary progressive disease courses of multiple sclerosis. Seventy years after the first description of EAE and the publication of >7000 articles, we are aware of the obvious limitations of EAE as a model of multiple sclerosis, but feel strongly that when used appropriately it will continue to provide a crucial tool for improving our understanding and treatment of this devastating disease.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

The enigma of multiple sclerosis: inflammation and neurodegeneration cause heterogeneous dysfunction and damage.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: The demyelinating disease multiple sclerosis has an autoimmune inflammatory component, which has dominated the description of multiple sclerosis. A degenerative component to multiple sclerosis was always apparent, but was underappreciated until recently. Recent work has brought axonal pathology and brain atrophy into new focus. The purpose of this review is to highlight the relative roles played by the inflammatory and degenerative processes in multiple sclerosis pathology. RECENT FINDINGS: In the past year reports have been published to show that early disability and disease progression correlate with axonal damage, and that brain atrophy resulting from axonal loss is a feature of early multiple sclerosis, and is not restricted to the secondary progressive forms of the disease. Inflammatory mediators (CD8 T cells and antibodies) are implicated in axonal damage, and treatment with steroids or anti-inflammatory therapies reduce brain atrophy, pointing to the involvement of the inflammatory response in the initiation of degeneration. Reduced regenerative capability also contributes to degeneration, and inflammatory responses are shown to inhibit the growth and migration of precursor cells for oligodendrocytes. SUMMARY: Oligodendrocyte precursors are abundant in multiple sclerosis lesions, but fail to remyelinate. Oligodendrocyte growth and regeneration are probably compromised by the action of growth inhibitory signals and lack of growth stimuli. Inflammatory cells and mediators induce axonal loss as well as demyelination. The degenerative response is therefore an integral and early component of multiple sclerosis.

Atrophy↗
PubMed1989

Tuberous sclerosis and the relation with renal angiomyolipoma. A genetic study on the clinical aspects.

Renal angiomyolipomas were present in 23 out of a series of 38 patients with proven tuberous sclerosis (60.5%). Multiplicity and bilateral localization of combined renal angiomyolipomas were important differences between this category and the isolated, usually solitary, angiomyolipomas. One of the parents of a patient with tuberous sclerosis had small renal angiomyolipomas without signs of tuberous sclerosis. This indicates that renal angiomyolipomas might be a forme fruste of tuberous sclerosis. Two patients with suspected isolated renal angiomyolipomas proved to have tuberous sclerosis. From this study we can conclude that multiple angiomyolipomas, or a combination of a single renal hamartoma with one of the signs suggestive of tuberous sclerosis, warrant a thorough examination to exclude tuberous sclerosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

Disproportionate elevation of the immunoglobulin G1 concentration in cerebrospinal fluids of patients with multiple sclerosis.

We determined immunoglobulin G (IgG) subclass concentrations and studied their distributions in the cerebrospinal fluids of patients suffering from multiple sclerosis, other inflammatory neurological diseases, and non-inflammatory diseases of the nervous system in comparison with a control group. In addition, the four subclass concentrations were measured in serum specimens of the multiple sclerosis and control groups. These data were correlated with the extent of local IgG synthesis in the subarachnoid spaces of the patients belonging to the different groups. We found a selective elevation of the IgG1 subclass in the cerebrospinal fluids of multiple sclerosis patients, and there was only a very small overlap of the IgG1 ranges of the multiple sclerosis and control groups. No major differences were detected between the IgG subclass distributions in different courses of multiple sclerosis nor between multiple sclerosis and control sera. The group with non-inflammatory diseases showed a uniform elevation of all four subclasses and a greater overlap with the normal range. This latter feature was combined with an elevated IgG1 concentration in the group with other inflammatory diseases. It is concluded that locally synthesized IgG in the cerebrospinal fluids of multiple sclerosis patients consists mainly of IgG1.

Humans↗
PubMed1990

Patterns of disease activity in multiple sclerosis: clinical and magnetic resonance imaging study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the abnormalities shown by magnetic resonance imaging of the brain in three clinically distinct groups of patients with multiple sclerosis, and to correlate the extent of abnormality with the degree of clinical disability in the three groups. DESIGN: All patients underwent magnetic resonance imaging and full neurological examination, and their disability was scored according to the expanded Kurtzke disability state scale. SETTING: National Hospital for Nervous Diseases (Multiple Sclerosis NMR Research Group). PATIENTS: Three groups of patients with confirmed multiple sclerosis were studied: 12 patients with minimal disability despite a long (greater than 10 years) duration of illness (benign multiple sclerosis), 16 who had developed progressive disability after a relapsing and remitting course (secondary progressive multiple sclerosis), and 13 who had had progressive disability from the onset of the disease (primary progressive multiple sclerosis). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Number and size of lesions in 17 anatomically defined sites; total lesion load, estimated with an arbitrary scoring system weighted for the size of lesions; and disability score. RESULTS: Magnetic resonance imaging showed that all 41 patients had abnormalities. These were extensive in the groups with secondary progressive and benign disease compared with the group with primary progressive disease. The lesions in the patients with secondary progressive disease were larger and more confluent than those in the two other groups (p = 0.007). Most lesions (85%) in the patients with primary progressive disease were under 5 mm in diameter; this percentage was higher than that in the two other groups (p = 0.032). Consequently the patients with primary progressive disease had the lowest mean lesion load (36.7); that in the patients with benign disease was 52.7 and that in the patients with secondary progressive disease 64.6 (p = 0.05). No correlation existed between disability and total lesion load. The distribution of brain lesions and of detectable lesions of the spinal cord, and the frequency of cortical atrophy, were similar in all groups. CONCLUSIONS: No relation was found between the degree of clinical disability and the extent of abnormality shown by magnetic resonance imaging: patients with clinically benign disease often had extensive abnormalities and those with primary progressive disease had surprisingly few lesions. Though magnetic resonance imaging increases knowledge of the disease process in multiple sclerosis and is invaluable in diagnosis, it is not helpful in predicting disability in individual patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1965

Lipid studies in the blood and brain in multiple sclerosis and motor neurone disease.

The lipid patterns of plasma, red blood cells, and leucocytes from normal controls and from patients with multiple sclerosis and motor neurone disease have been studied by thin-layer chromatography. The fatty acid composition of cholesterol esters and lecithin in plasma from normal subjects and from patients with multiple sclerosis are reported. The fatty acid composition of lecithin of cerebral white matter from normal control subjects, from multiple sclerosis, and from motor neurone disease as well as of cholesterol esters in multiple sclerosis are recorded and compared. No significant abnormalities were found in the blood lipid profile in multiple sclerosis, but in motor neurone disease red cell sphingomyelin was slightly reduced and white cell lecithin slightly increased. The fatty acids of plasma cholesterol esters showed a slight decrease in palmitic and stearic acid in multiple sclerosis. The fatty acids in lecithin in multiple sclerosis, both in the apparently normal white matter and in the plaques, showed a slightly increased degree of saturation, while the loss of unsaturated acids was in oleic acids.

Brain↗
PubMed1973

Serum measles antibodies in multiple sclerosis.

Serum haemagglutination inhibition/HI/antibody titres to measles virus were examined in 80 multiple sclerosis patients, their 20 sibs, in 990 healthy controls, and 25 control patients. The measles HI titres were significantly raised in the serum of multiple sclerosis patients compared with healthy controls. There was no statistical difference between the levels of HI antibody titres in multiple sclerosis patients and their sibs. The measles HI titres decreased significantly in older age groups of healthy controls, whereas an analogous drop was not found in the multiple sclerosis group. The levels of serum HI antibody titres did not correlate with the sex of patients with multiple sclerosis or the activity of the disease. In the CSF of six multiple sclerosis patients low titres of HI antibodies were detected, whereas none of eight control patients had measurable traces of measles antibodies in the CSF. The significance of these findings in the aetiology of multiple sclerosis is briefly discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Multiple sclerosis in island populations: prevalence in the Bailiwicks of Guernsey and Jersey.

The aim of this study was to establish for the first time the prevalence of multiple sclerosis in the Bailiwicks of Guernsey and Jersey, as representing the most southerly part of the British Isles. All patients with multiple sclerosis in the Channel Islands resident on prevalence day were identified by contacting all medical practices, Multiple Sclerosis, and Action Research for Multiple Sclerosis societies by letter and visits. The crude overall prevalence rates were 113/100,000 (95% confidence interval (95% CI) 90.3-135.7) and 86.7/100,000 (95% CI 63.3-110.0) for the Bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey respectively. When standardised to the age and sex structure of a previously reported Northern Ireland population the standardised prevalence ratios were 120.2/100,000 (95% CI 96.0-144.3) for Jersey and 95.6/100,000 (95% CI 69.9-121.3) for the Bailiwick of Guernsey. When compared with recent studies in the northern United Kingdom the prevalence rates for multiple sclerosis in the Channel Islands lend some support to the proposed latitudinal gradient in the British Isles although the standardised prevalence ratio in the Bailiwick of Jersey is similar to those found in recent studies of southern Britain. The standardised prevalence rates of probable and definite multiple sclerosis for the male populations were 37.3/100,000 (95% CI 17.9-56.7) for the Bailiwick of Guernsey and 45.5/100,000 (95% CI 26.3-64.7) for the Bailiwick of Jersey whereas the standardised prevalence rates for the female populations were 97.5/100,000 (95% CI 73.9-143.5) and 139.5/100,000 (95% CI 112.6-181.2) respectively. Thus there is a striking and unexplained 43% higher prevalence of probable and definite multiple sclerosis in the female population of Jersey compared with that of the Bailiwick of Guernsey. This seems to be due to an unusually low prevalence of the disease among the female population of the Bailiwick of Guernsey compared with that of the United Kingdom mainland.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Corpora amylacea in hippocampal sclerosis.

Corpora amylacea have been reported in around 60% of hippocampal sclerosis specimens. The aim was to determine whether there are clinical and quantitative hippocampal MRI differences between hippocampal sclerosis with and without corpora amylacea. Corpora amylacea density was determined in 46 resected hippocampi of patients with temporal lobe epilepsy, using a three dimensional microscopical counting technique. Forty one hippocampi had hippocampal sclerosis. Twenty six of the 41 (63%) hippocampal sclerosis specimens contained corpora amylacea, which were found in highest numbers in the CA1 subregion of the hippocampus. Corpora amylacea density in the CA1 correlated inversely with the neuronal density in CA1. Hippocampal sclerosis with corpora amylacea had the same clinical and quantitative hippocampal MRI characteristics as hippocampal sclerosis without corpora amylacea, and did not affect seizure outcome after surgery adversely. In conclusion, formation of corpora amylacea seems to be a pathological response to neuronal cell loss in most hippocampal sclerosis specimens, with no clear clinical and quantitative hippocampal MRI correlates.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Age at immigration to England of Asian and Caribbean immigrants and the risk of developing multiple sclerosis.

OBJECTIVES: Previous studies have shown that multiple sclerosis is very uncommon among Indian and Pakistani immigrants to England but that their children born in the United Kingdom, in the age groups available for study, have a similar risk of developing the disease as occurs in the general British population. The present study was to ascertain if these immigrants who enter England as children below the age of 15, have a higher risk of developing multiple sclerosis than those that enter after this age. METHODS: A search was made in Greater London, the West Midlands, Leicester, Bradford, Halifax, and Huddersfield to find ethnic Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi immigrants to England with multiple sclerosis. During the course of the study some immigrants from the Caribbean with multiple sclerosis were also found. The population at risk by ethnic group and age at entry was not available from the 1991 Census but was available in the annual Labour Force Surveys. RESULTS: Indian and Pakistani immigrants who entered England younger than 15 had a higher risk of developing multiple sclerosis than those that entered after this age. Caribbean immigrants, who have a higher multiple sclerosis prevalence than Asian immigrants, did not show this difference. CONCLUSION: This study confirms previous studies which show that the environment during childhood is a major factor in determining the risk of developing multiple sclerosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

1H-MRS in patients with multiple sclerosis undergoing treatment with interferon beta-1a: results of a preliminary study.

BACKGROUND: In vivo magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) has been widely used to assess biochemical changes which occur in demyelinating lesions in white matter of patients with multiple sclerosis. It has been suggested that metabolic variations evidenced by MRS are sensitive indicators of the effects of immunomodulatory treatments in this disease. Given the recent finding of an increase in the disease activity in patients with multiple sclerosis treated with interferon (IFN) beta-1a in the first period of treatment,1H MRS was used to investigate further the modification in brain metabolic indices, particularly in the first phase of IFN beta treatment. METHODS: A 1H MRS study was performed on five patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis who were being treated with intramuscular IFN beta-1a (6 million units/week) for six months and on five untreated patients. The mean age, duration of the disease, and expanded disability status scores (EDSS) of the two groups were similar. Patients were evaluated at the beginning of the study and in the first, third, and sixth months of treatment. RESULTS: In the multiple sclerosis white matter lesions, N-acetylaspartate (NAA), choline (Cho), inositol (Ins), and creatine (Cr) peaks did not vary significantly over the entire period of the study in the untreated group. In the treated group there was a significant increase in the Cho peak area at the first month compared with the pretreatment period, and this increase continued in the third and sixth months (p<0.001). A slight but not significant rise in the Cho peak was also found in normal appearing white matter in the patient group undergoing treatment with IFN beta-1a. The increase in Cho and the lack of significant changes in Cr and NAA peaks induced a significant rise in Cho/Cr and Cho/NAA ratios over the entire period of treatment compared with those at the beginning of the study (p<0.02 and p<0.005 respectively). In the treated group there was a slight but significant increase in the Ins peak in the first month (p<0.05) but in the third and sixth months of treatment the Ins values returned to the pretreatment range. CONCLUSIONS: IFN beta-1a has an impact on metabolite concentrations in multiple sclerosis lesions measured by proton MRS. The increase in Cho, Cho/NAA, and Cho/Cr ratios in multiple sclerosis lesions reinforces the view that they are an index of active or recent demyelination and could support the clinical, neuroradiological and immunological evidence showing an increase in disease activity during the first period of treatment with IFN beta-1a. On the other hand, the increase in the Cho peak could be indicative of a rise in membrane turnover in multiple sclerosis lesions or a remodelling of plaques which is not necessarily due to a de novo immune mediated demyelination.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

High incidence and prevalence of multiple sclerosis in south east Scotland: evidence of a genetic predisposition.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence and prevalence of multiple sclerosis in the Lothian and Border Health Board Regions of south east Scotland. METHODS: Incidence study: all patients were identified in whom a diagnosis of Poser category probable or definite multiple sclerosis was made by a neurologist between 1992 and 1995. Prevalence study: all patients known to have multiple sclerosis who were alive and resident in the study area on 15 March 1995 were recorded. RESULTS: The crude annual incidence rates of probable or definite multiple sclerosis per 100000 population were the highest ever reported: 12.2 (95% confidence interval (95% CI) 10.8-13.7) in the Lothian Region and 10.1 (95% CI 6.6-13.6) in the Border Region. A total of 1613 patients with multiple sclerosis were resident in the study area, giving standardised prevalence rates per 100000 population of 203 (95% CI 192-214) in the Lothian Region and 219 (95% CI 191-251) in the Border Region. Prevalent cases were more likely than expected to have a Scottish surname (risk ratio 1.24, 95% CI 1.14-1.34). CONCLUSION: Orkney and Shetland were previously thought to have by far the highest prevalence of multiple sclerosis in the world: about double that found in England and Wales. However, the prevalence in south east Scotland is equally high, suggesting that the Scottish population as a whole has a genetic susceptibility to the disease, and undermining the hypothesis that patterns of infection specific to small sparsely populated island communities are important in the causation of multiple sclerosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Ocular microtremor (OMT): a new neurophysiological approach to multiple sclerosis.

Using a piezoelectric transducer, the frequency and pattern of ocular microtremor (OMT) between 50 normal subjects and 50 patients with multiple sclerosis were compared. Controls were age matched. All records were analysed blindly. The frequency of OMT in the normal group was 86 (SD 6) Hz, which was significantly different from that of the multiple sclerosis group (71 (SD) 10 Hz, p<0.001). Those in the multiple sclerosis group with clinical evidence of brain stem or cerebellar disease (n=36) had an average OMT frequency of 67 (SD 9) Hz (p<0.001) compared with normal (n=86), whereas those with no evidence of brain stem or cerebellar involvement (n=14) had a frequency of 81.2 (SD 6) Hz (p<0.05, n=64). The differences between the two multiple sclerosis groups were also significant (p<0. 001, n=50). At least one abnormality (frequency and pattern) of OMT activity was seen in 78% of patients with multiple sclerosis. In the presence of brain stem or cerebellar disease 89% had abnormal records whereas in the absence of such disease 50% had abnormal records. This is the first report of the application of this technique to patients with multiple sclerosis. The results suggest that OMT activity may be of value in the assessment of multiple sclerosis.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Magnetisation transfer ratio and mean diffusivity of normal appearing white and grey matter from patients with multiple sclerosis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the feasibility of a new technique based on diffusion anisotropy to segment white and grey matter of the brain. To use this technique to measure the mean diffusivity () and magnetisation transfer ratio (MTR) of normal appearing white matter (NAWM) and grey matter (NAGM) from patients with multiple sclerosis. METHODS: Dual echo turbo spin echo, MT, and diffusion weighted scans of the brain were obtained from 30 patients with multiple sclerosis and 18 sex and age matched healthy controls. After image coregistration and removal of T2 visible lesions, white and grey matter were segmented from 10 supratentorial slices using diffusion anisotropy thresholds. Histograms of the average MTR and were created for normal white and grey matter of controls and NAWM and NAGM of patients with multiple sclerosis. RESULTS: All the MTR histogram derived metrics of the NAWM from patients with multiple sclerosis were significantly lower than those of white matter from controls. The peak height of the histogram of NAWM from patients with multiple sclerosis was also significantly different from that of normal white matter. The average MTR, the peak location of the MTR histogram, and peak height of the histogram of the NAGM of patients with multiple sclerosis were significantly lower than the corresponding quantities of grey matter from controls. CONCLUSIONS: A technique was developed for segmenting white and grey matter with the potential for improving the understanding of the pathophysiology of many neurological conditions. Its application to the study of multiple sclerosis confirms the presence of a diffuse tissue damage in the NAWM of these patients and suggests that subtle changes also occur in the NAGM.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

Is multiple sclerosis a sexually transmitted infection?

It is proposed that multiple sclerosis may be transmitted chiefly by sexual contact. Arguments favouring this include: migration studies that suggest a transmissible agent in adolescence; clusters of multiple sclerosis which have occurred in low prevalence areas following entry of young males; the similarity of multiple sclerosis to tropical spastic paraplegia, a known sexually transmitted infection with resemblance to primary progressive multiple sclerosis; an increased rate in drug misusers; a similar age of onset and sex pattern to that found in sexually transmitted disease; increased incidence of multiple sclerosis in those using oral contraceptives; low multiple sclerosis rates in societies with a strict moral code; longitudinal shifts in sex prevalence that show an increase in women after the sexual revolution of the 1960s; and important exceptions to the worldwide distribution corresponding to countries with permissive attitudes to sex. Family, conjugal pair, twin, and adoption studies are compatible with an infectious cause of multiple sclerosis if this is sexually transmitted. It is not proposed that sexual transmission is the only cause but that inherited factors create a susceptibility to a sexually transmitted neurotropic agent. It is hoped this hypothesis might encourage a new direction of neurological research.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Histological and functional characteristics of peritoneal membrane in peritoneal sclerosis of PD patients.

BACKGROUND: Function and structure of peritoneal membrane (PM) are impaired on peritoneal dialysis (PD). Peritoneal sclerosis is a common finding in peritoneal biopsies (PB) of PD patients. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of peritoneal sclerosis on peritoneal function and clinical parameters in PD patients submitted to peritoneal biopsy. METHODS: A PB was performed on 31 PD patients during catheter removal due to malfunction or after drop-out from treatment. For each patient PM transport was evaluated by the last peritoneal equilibration test before PB. Each daily glucose load was calculated. Tissue was formalin-embedded and stained for histological and immunohistochemical studies. RESULTS: Patients with submesothelial sclerosis and those with impairment of submesothelial basement membrane and subendothelial vascular membrane were submitted to a larger daily glucose load. Peritoneal sclerosis > 50 microns was more frequent in high transporters, who were exposed to larger daily glucose load compared to medium-high transporters. Mesothelial loss is correlated to peritoneal sclerosis and vascular injuries. CONCLUSIONS: Peritoneal sclerosis is not constant in PD patients: it is related to the loss of mesothelium integrity, to the daily glucose load of PD treatment and to vascular injuries, but apparently not to the presence of inflammatory infiltrate. It remains a matter of debate how much the peritoneal sclerosis modifies the function of PM and how new more biocompatible PD solutions could reduce PM injury.

Actins↗
PubMed2004

Intravenous immunoglobulin and interferon: successful treatment of optic neuritis in pediatric multiple sclerosis.

Optic neuritis is a common clinical condition that causes loss of vision. It can be clinically isolated or can occur as one of the manifestations of multiple sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis is a severe disabling demyelinating disease of the central nervous system, which is rare among children. The treatment of optic neuritis has been investigated in several trials, the results of which have shown that corticosteroids speed up the recovery of vision without affecting the final visual outcome. Treatment of neurologic disorders with intravenous immunoglobulin is an increasing feature of our practice for an expanding range of indications, including multiple sclerosis. Owing to its anti-inflammatory properties, intravenous immunoglobulin can be beneficial in the treatment of acute relapses and in the prevention of new relapses of multiple sclerosis. To our knowledge, there is only one experience of treatment of optic neuritis with intravenous immunoglobulin in multiple sclerosis, even if therapeutic trials are used in the therapy of multiple sclerosis. We report on a girl with optic neuritis and multiple sclerosis in whom treatment with intravenous immunoglobulin at first alone and subsequently associated with interferon achieved great improvement in visual acuity.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗
PubMed1998

Disease activity and the immune set in multiple sclerosis: blood markers for immunotherapy.

There is no established immunological marker of multiple sclerosis activity, which reflects the poor understanding of the immunopathogenesis of multiple sclerosis. Passive measurement of the levels of soluble inflammatory markers, whose half lives are usually measured in minutes and hours, can only indicate the extent of instantaneous inflammation, which is known to fluctuate in multiple sclerosis. We favour measurement of immune responses in vitro. As healthy individuals have T cell reactivities to myelin proteins that are postulated to be pathogenic in multiple sclerosis, we prefer non-antigen specific mitogen and recall antigen assays as immunological markers. We illustrate their use in the treatment of 27 patients with multiple sclerosis using a pulse of humanised anti-lymphocyte (CD52) antibody that caused prolonged T cell depletion. The mitogen-induced proliferation, and secretion of IFN-gamma, from peripheral blood mononuclear cells in vitro was significantly reduced after treatment, suggesting that immune responses had been modulated. Such observations will only gain credence as an outcome measure if they are shown to correlate with clinical or radiological measures of multiple sclerosis activity. Perhaps more importantly, aspects of the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis may be revealed by close immunological surveillance of patients undergoing experimental treatments.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗