NIH-funded Researchers Show Possible Trigger for MS Nerve Damage

Using high-resolution images from a technique called in-vivo two-photon laser scanning microscopy, researchers from the Gladstone Institute for Neurological Disease have provided evidence for how nerves may be damaged during the early stages of multiple sclerosis (MS). 

Previous studies have suggested that the leakage of fibrinogen, a blood clotting protein, through a disruption in the blood-brain barrier and into the central nervous system activated resident macrophages called microglia.  This in turn caused the immune cells to destroy myelin and eventually cause nerve damage.  Using a mouse model, the researchers found that the fibrinogen leakage was followed by the clustering of microglia and other immune cells around the blood vessels. Furthermore, microglial activation occurred only days before any damage to the nerves began. 

The researches also found data suggesting that fibrinogen binding to the microglial receptor CD11b/CD18 caused the microglia to release reactive oxygen molecules that caused neuronal damage.  Genetically modifying fibrinogen’s blood clotting activity, in turn, prevented activation of the microglia and nerve damage, suggesting a new direction for therapeutic strategies.

We’d previously spoken about MS in class as one of our SNBAL assignments, but we spoke about the use of stem cells as a treatment for MS instead.  I found this article interesting because after providing some evidence for the mechanism of neuronal damage, they provided a new strategy to prevent the onset of MS.  Stopping the disease early on would prevent any permanent damage.

Article:  NIH-funded Researchers Show Possible Trigger for MS Nerve Damage