For several years, the biomedical research community has recognized that compounds already approved for human use might have additional therapeutic applications. To facilitate investigation of new applications for existing drugs, the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) assembled several collections of molecules that can be screened for specific characteristics. Two recent papers report the screeningContinueContinue reading “Teaching old drugs new tricks”
Tag Archives: multiple sclerosis
Stem cell therapy for multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system destroys the myelin that surrounds nerve fibers, inhibiting nerve impulses, impairing mobility and vision and causing fatigue and pain. Many researchers, including Thomas Lane (then working at University of California, Irvine) and Jeanne Loring (The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA), work to developContinueContinue reading “Stem cell therapy for multiple sclerosis”
Using nanoparticles to teach immune tolerance
Autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and type 1 diabetes are the third largest cause of morbidity and mortality in the US. In these and other autoimmune diseases, immune cells mistakenly attack and destroy healthy tissue; in the case of multiple sclerosis, the target is myelin, which creates the protective sheath around nerve cells. AsContinueContinue reading “Using nanoparticles to teach immune tolerance”
Histamine links allergy and autoimmune disease
The neurotransmitter histamine is known to be involved in allergic reactions and other physiological processes. It works by dilating blood vessels and making their walls more permeable so that immune cells can move around more easily. To the extent that autoimmune disorders share some characteristics with allergic reactions, it seems reasonable that similar pathways couldContinueContinue reading “Histamine links allergy and autoimmune disease”
Restoring myelin, restoring nerve function
Loss of myelin underlies several disorders of the central nervous system (CNS) in humans, the most well known of which may be multiple sclerosis. Multiple sclerosis affects roughly 2.5 million people worldwide and can cause a range of symptoms including fatigue, loss of coordination and balance, numbness, blurred vision or blindness and even paralysis. ItContinueContinue reading “Restoring myelin, restoring nerve function”
Vaccinating against autoimmunity?
Vaccines are already commonly used to prevent a variety of infectious diseases. Now they may become a key therapeutic strategy for a whole new host of disorders: autoimmune. New research from Peter Terness, Thilo Oelert, Sandra Ehser and their groups at Heidelberg University Hospital and German Cancer Research Center (Heidelberg, Germany) shows some success inContinueContinue reading “Vaccinating against autoimmunity?”
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