Weekend Update, June 29th, 2013- Tomorrow (July 1st) is Canada Day, our national holiday here in Canada. It is a long weekend and in Edmonton we’ve had some great weather. My daughter and I took in the Edmonton Eskimos football game on Saturday (CFL) and we are headed out to the lake with my wife on Sunday. Wherever you are in the world, I hope you are having a great weekend. Anyways, here are some multiple sclerosis related headlines which made the rounds in the media over past seven days.

University of Nottingham researchers, “have discovered a molecular mechanism, which could bring about the development of new treatments for Multiple Sclerosis (MS).” Specifically, they have found, “a synthetic chemical compound that inhibits the pro-inflammatory signals produced by the immune system in MS.”

Interestingly this compound stimulates the body to produce interferon beta, the compound found in the most common medications for multiple sclerosis.

You can read the full article by clicking the heading above.

Edinburgh University scientists have been studying the Zebra fish because it shares, “80% of the genes associated with human diseases.” The research has lead to “vital” information regarding myelin and of interest to patients with multiple sclerosis:

They are now studying how the manipulation of genes and the use of drugs might promote myelin formation in zebrafish, potentially paving the way for the treatment of myelin-related conditions such as multiple sclerosis.

If you would like to read more about this story, click on the heading above to navigate to the BBC article.

An article posted this week on the UC San Francisco website, described how a UCSF research team, “has identified the likely genetic mechanism that causes some patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) to progress more quickly than others to a debilitating stage of the disease.”

The team found that the absence of the gene Tob1 in CD4 cells, “was the key to early onset of more serious disease in an animal model of MS.”

What this study could mean for people diagnosed with multiple sclerosis is that neurologists will be able to better predict the course of the disease and tailor treatments accordingly.

If you would like to read the full article, please click on the heading above.

Until next time,

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