This Is MS Multiple Sclerosis Community: Knowledge & Support

Not much in this article, but thought it worth posting.

Introducing stem cell based Myelin repair therapies in patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Professor Neil J. Scolding, FRCP PhD, University of Bristol Institute of Clinical Neurosciences, U.K., provided a report of his studies of bone-marrow derived cells for the treatment of multiple sclerosis.

About 30 years ago, investigators began to think that cell therapies might be useful to treat loss of myelin caused by multiple sclerosis (MS). The disease has proved more complex, and tissue repair in the brain and spinal cord more challenging than we first thought. Many factors contribute to myelin and nervous tissue damage in MS.

Cells capable of myelin repair are present in damaged areas but nonetheless do not seem to repair myelin. This might mean that simply adding more myelin-making cells to lesions won’t be enough to help in this disease. Professor Scolding is studying bone marrow derived stem cells. These have a very limited capacity for turning into myelin forming cells. But they seem to stimulate repair processes that are key to tissue regeneration in MS.

A small safety study of these cells in six patients with chronic MS is nearing completion. The final report will be made when the data analysis is finished. Dr. Scolding has said, “We are grateful indeed to the Myelin Project for our funding, without which this trial would have proved very difficult to complete.”

Source: The Myelin Project © The Myelin Project (11.12.08)

Thank you for this post brom. I will be interested to see the final report.

I had high hopes for the Prof's work, it sounds like it has not proved as simple as he anticipated. Let's pray that something turns up soon.

J.