On the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada website:Good news from Québec about MS
Researchers at the University of Québec-Laval have found the involvement of a molecule in the development of multiple sclerosis (MS), an autoimmune disease that attacks the central nervous system.
In their study, the team, led by Dr. Steve Lacroix, professor of molecular medicine, focused on one of the mechanisms that characterize multiple sclerosis, the massive influx of immune cells in the brain and spinal cord. The researchers found that the interleukin IL-1 beta molecule was important in the development of brain inflammation and autoimmunity. It was discovered that when this molecule is blocked, the rodents used in the study did not develop multiple sclerosis.
Dr. Lacroix reported that deleting the gene of interest, the famous immune cells that attack the brain, spinal cord, neurons, myelin (a kind if sheath that protects neurons) are unable to enter the central nervous system and cause death and permanent damage to nerve cells. The researchers feel that the discovery of the involvement of interleukin IL-1 beta offers a glimpse of hope and allows treatment options. They indicate that they will not materialize until several years from now, an estimate of five years, when determining whether the molecule also has beneficial effects that should be considered to be blocked in a possible treatment.
A statement issued by Radio Canada International indicated that MS is considered a Canadian disease because in Canada the prevalence rate is the highest in the world.
According to the Multiple Sclerosis Society Québec Division, more than 100,000 people in Canada are living with autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. Louis Adam, Executive Director of the organization, indicates that there is something in the environment that causes the greatest number of cases of MS to be registered in Canada.
--Source: "Promising Discovery for Multiple Sclerosis," Science News Hub, May 23, 2016
https://mssociety.ca/
"In Canada, you have a greater risk of developing multiple sclerosis than in any other country. Simply put, it's Canada's disease."
