Multiple Sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory autoimmune-mediated disease of the Central Nervous System (CNS).Different treatment protocols, based on neurotropic viral infections and/or immunization with CNS proteins, have been implemented. Although there are encouraging outcomes, cure is still far from reach. Here, we discuss some ofthese treatment options.In multiple sclerosis (MS), inflammation-induced damage againstthe axonal myelin sheath, or demyelination, within the central nervoussystem (CNS), leads to breakdown of saltatory conduction and progressive disability due to neuronal cell death. There is limitedendogenous repair of demyelination in the CNS of MS patients.Moreover, the suppressor T cell responses are deficient in MS andhigher antibody responses to microbial agents have been found, bothof which may also be due to lower production of downregulatorymechanisms. Pathologically MS is characterized by inflammatory demyelination,a feature similar to viral infections of the CNS . While viruses havebeen considered as an important etiological agent in MS, no singlevirus has been consistently isolated from MS patients, to account for asubstantial, if not all, cases of MS. While MS is considered to be a disease of the colder climate,primarily affecting North America and Europe, recent evidencesuggests that this disease is prevalent in areas like Japan, China andthe Middle East (unpublished observation), countries traditionally considered low-incidence regions. Foroozan Mokhtarian, Multiple Sclerosis: Animal Models and Treatment Options

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Last date updated on September, 2024