A potential new therapeutic target for multiple sclerosis has now been identified in a new study conducted by researchers at the University of Alberta and McGill University, both in Canada. The results are published in the journal JCI Insight.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease affecting the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves, symptoms of which can include “cognitive impairment, dizziness, tremors, and fatigue.”

MS severity can vary wildly from case to case. In mild cases, a person might experience minor symptoms such as numbness in the limbs.

Severe cases of MS might result in more serious symptoms — including paralysis or loss of vision — but it is not currently possible for us to predict which cases will progress to this level and which will remain mild.

It is estimated that around 2.3 million people across the globe are living with MS, and the disease is “two to three times more common in women than in men.”

Scientists do not understand the causes of MS very well, but they do know that the disease begins when T cells — which are a type of white blood cell — enter the brain.

 

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