Current Treatments
BETASERON® (interferon beta-1b) is indicated for the treatment of relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis to reduce the frequency of clinical exacerbations. Patients with multiple sclerosis in whom efficacy has been demonstrated include patients who have experienced a first clinical episode and have MRI features consistent with multiple sclerosis

AVONEX® (Interferon beta-1a) is a 166 amino acid glycoprotein with a predicted molecular weight of approximately 22,500 daltons. It is produced by recombinant DNA technology using genetically engineered Chinese Hamster Ovary cells into which the human interferon beta gene has been introduced. The amino acid sequence of AVONEX® is identical to that of natural human interferon beta.

COPAXONE is the brand name for glatiramer acetate (formerly known as copolymer-1). Glatiramer acetate, the active ingredient of COPAXONE, consists of the acetate salts of synthetic polypeptides, containing four naturally occurring amino acids: L-glutamic acid, L-alanine, L-tyrosine, and L-lysine with an average molar fraction of 0.141, 0.427, 0.095, and 0.338, respectively. The average molecular weight of glatiramer acetate is 5,000 – 9,000 daltons. Glatiramer acetate is identified by specific antibodies.

Rebif® (interferon beta-1a) is a purified 166 amino acid glycoprotein with a molecular weight of approximately 22,500 daltons. It is produced by recombinant DNA technology using genetically engineered Chinese Hamster Ovary cells into which the human interferon beta gene has been introduced. The amino acid sequence of Rebif® is identical to that of natural fibroblast derived human interferon beta. Natural interferon beta and interferon beta-1a (Rebif®) are glycosylated with each containing a single N-linked complex carbohydrate moiety.

Tysabri is a monoclonal antibody that affects the actions of the body's immune system. Monoclonal antibodies are made to target and destroy only certain cells in the body. This may help to protect healthy cells from damage. Tysabri is used to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis.
Gilenya™ is a new class of medication called a phingosine 1-phosphate receptormodulator, which is thought to act by retaining certain white blood cells (lympohcytes) in the lymph nodes, thereby preventing those cells from crossing the blood-brain barrier into the central nervous system (CNS). Preventing the entry of these cells into the CNS reduces inflammatory damage to nerve cells.


Early Symptoms
The most common early symptoms of MS include:
* Tingling * Numbness
* Loss of balance
* Weakness in one or more limbs
* Blurred or double vision

Less common symptoms of MS may include
* Slurred speech
* Sudden onset of paralysis
* Lack of coordination
* Cognitive difficulties
Listed above, the early symptoms. I tend to be a poster child for these. The symptoms that occur later on are too numerous just to list. There will be a link included that will get you to a site where these symptoms are listed and explained. Keep in mind that someone may have some of these or many of these, there is no way to tell.
Multiple sclerosis statistics show that approximately 250,000 to 350,000 people in the United States have been diagnosed with this disease. The life expectancy for people with multiple sclerosis is nearly the same as for those without MS. Because of this, multiple sclerosis statistics place the annual cost of MS in the United States in the billions of dollars. MS is five times more prevalent in temperate climates -- such as those found in the northern United States, Canada, and Europe -- than in tropical regions. Furthermore, the age of 15 seems to be significant in terms of risk for developing the disease. Some studies indicate that a person moving from a high-risk (temperate) to a low-risk (tropical) area before the age of 15 tends to adopt the risk (in this case, low) of the new area and vice versa. Other studies suggest that people moving after age 15 maintain the risk of the area where they grew up.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Study Identifies Possible Target of Immune Attacks in Some People with MS : National MS Society

Research - Stop Researchers have identified a protein that may be a target of the immune attack in some people with MS, according to a new study published in The New England Journal of Medicine. An immune response to this protein – a protein called “KIR4.1,” which is found on several types of brain cells – was observed in the serum of 47% of people with MS who were tested. Further research is needed to confirm these findings, and to understand what the role of this protein may play in MS and its potential for developing new treatments. Rajneesh Srivastava, MSc and Bernhard Hemmer, MD (Technische Universität, Munich) led the international team, who are supported by grants from the German Ministry for Education and Research and the National MS Society, among others (2012;367:115-23). Background: Multiple sclerosis involves immune system attacks that damage the brain and spinal cord, particularly myelin (the substance that surrounds and supports nerve fibers). Myelin-making cells and nerve fibers are also damaged during the course of the disease. The spinal fluid of most people with MS contains increased amounts of a type of antibody called IgG. Antibodies are immune proteins directed against an immune target, or “antigen.” IgG antibodies are present almost exclusively in infectious and inflammatory disorders and are usually directed against the disease-causing agent. However, previous attempts to identify antigens to which antibodies are targeted in MS have failed. The current study focused on the serum portion of blood samples from people with MS and from others, rather than on spinal fluid. The study: In a series of experiments, the authors screened serum samples from people with MS and observed that IgG antibodies were attaching themselves to specific myelin-making cells. Using “proteomics” – advanced technology that scans hundreds of thousands of proteins simultaneously – they screened numerous proteins on the cells. They identified the protein KIR4.1 as the target of the IgG reaction. KIR4.1 is an ion channel; these are proteins that are active on the surfaces of several types of brain cells and are critical for cell function. The team then developed a method of testing people for the presence of antibodies against KIR4.1 in serum samples, and found antibodies to KIR4.1 in a substantial proportion of people with MS in comparison with others tested. In fact, the antibodies were found in serum of 186 of 397 (46.9%) people with MS, versus only 3 out of 329 people with other neurologic disorders, and in none out of 59 people without disease. Further studies revealed that when anti-KIR4.1 antibodies that were obtained from people with MS were injected into mice, abnormalities in the nervous system occurred. In previous studies, KIR4.1 has been shown to be important in myelin formation, so the authors conclude that this protein is a plausible candidate to be a target of the immune attack in at least some people who have MS. The investigators did not observe any clinical or other differences in people with MS who had the antibodies versus those who did not. How this protein may be involved in MS, and whether this finding will lead to new approaches to treating MS, awaits further research. Comment: In an accompanying editorial, Anne H. Cross, M.D (Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis) and Emmanuelle Waubant, M.D., Ph.D. (University of California, San Francisco) discuss the strengths of this study. “First, the authors used an unbiased approach to search for serum antibodies specific to patients with multiple sclerosis and, once they found them, methodically sought the target,” they write. The specific role of the protein awaits definition, especially since half of the people with MS did not have the antibodies to KIR4.1. They note that even if these antibodies arise sometime after the nervous system has already sustained damage in MS, “it is conceivable that they may perpetuate destruction of the central nervous system.” Read more about efforts to stop MS in its tracks.

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About Me

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North Grafton, Massachusetts, United States
Well-educated, disabled at this point with Multiple Sclerosis. I am very glad that I was able to do the things that I have been able to do over the years. had to change the picture, this one's more realistic.