MS treatment with molecules that wakeup cells!

Researchers at the University of Alberta have recently attempted to treat MS with a type of molecule.
As reported by ISNA and according to the official website of the University of Alberta, this new study shows that a molecule known as fractalkine can promote the generation of myelin-producing brain cells. Myelin is a key factor in diseases such as MS, and acts as an insulator around nerves. Due to the inflammation caused by MS and similar diseases, this insulating sheath is gradually destroyed leading to neurological problems.
There are treatments to manage the symptomsor hinder the progression of MS, but effective treatments require the regeneration of the lost myelin. A major step towards MS treatment is finding methods to induce rapid myelination.
According to Anastassia Voronova, associate professor at the Genetics Department, University of Alberta, who is the head of this research team, said, “Neural stem cells producevarious brain cells including oligodendrocytes, which belong to the central and peripheral nervous systems. Oligodendrocytes are the only brain cells that produce myelin.”
She added, “These neural stem cells form the brain in the course of their growth. Part of the reason for their presence inadult brain is that they are in charge of replacing damaged or lost cells including oligodendrocytes. Still, this replacement is inefficient, especially in humans. My laboratory aims to identify molecules that can wake up the neural stem cells in the brain to compensate for the missing oligodendrocytes.”
Their study revealed that fractalkine could considerably stimulate the conversion of neural stem cells into oligodendrocytes. Voronova stated, “Fractalkine molecule and receptor work together to create cell signaling.”
Currently, Voronova and her team are researching the capacity of fractalkine in a mouse model of MS. They try to understand whether fractalkine can affect myelination in other neurodegenerative disorders. They believe that this molecule can prove beneficial to future drug development.
 
This study was published in Stem Cell Reports.