【medical-news】多发性硬化症患者的希望
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Treatment hope for sufferers of MS
DAMIEN HENDERSON
November 03 2006
SCIENTISTS have discovered a key protein responsible for protecting nerve fibres which could pave ways to new treatments for multiple sclerosis.
The protein, Par-3, is vital in the formation of myelin, a fatty white coating that sheaths nerve fibres, insulating them and aiding the passage of electrical signals.
Multiple sclerosis occurs when the body launches an immune system attack against itself, destroying the myelin sheath and leading to immobility among sufferers.
Dr Jona Chan, from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, said his team had identified the protein that underpins the formation of myelin.
He said: "It plays a vital role in the overall health and function of the nervous system, and its degeneration plays a role in a number of diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, peripheral neuropathies and even in spinal cord injury."
Par-3 sits at one end of myelin-forming cells, called Schwann cells, making contact with the nerve fibre to be insulated. There it acts as an "organising centre", bringing together key proteins essential for myelination.
When this centre was disrupted, Schwann cells could not form myelin properly, the researchers reported in the journal Science. Manipulating the Par-3 pathway could help the re-myelination of damaged nerves, said Dr Chan.
The discovery was welcomed by MS charities, who said it may form the basis of future research into a cure for the disease.
Mark Hazelwood, director of the MS Society Scotland, said: "It can only be another step along the road to understanding what happens with MS. We would welcome this and hope that it is something researchers pick up on."
David Harrison, spokesman for the MS Society, added: "This is something that really adds to our knowledge of the disease. One has to be careful not to get too overexcited but it is clearly an important piece of research. What one now has to hope is that will help to inform research into potential treatments."
Earlier this year, scientists found that statins, a cholesterol-lowering drug used to prevent heart disease, may also be effective in providing therapy for multiple sclerosis.
Laboratory tests on mice found that one popular statin, Lipitor, when given in combination with the MS drug Copaxone, worked synergistically to prevent or reduce paralysis in the animals.
However, claims of a "miracle cure" were discredited in September after a 20-year-old who said she had walked for the first time in five years after receiving the treatment in Holland said it was a scam.
Amanda Bryson, 20, received the therapy last year and saw a rush of MS sufferers pay for the same treatment. But her condition has since deteriorated so much she is confined to a wheelchair.
http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/73550.html
DAMIEN HENDERSON
November 03 2006
SCIENTISTS have discovered a key protein responsible for protecting nerve fibres which could pave ways to new treatments for multiple sclerosis.
The protein, Par-3, is vital in the formation of myelin, a fatty white coating that sheaths nerve fibres, insulating them and aiding the passage of electrical signals.
Multiple sclerosis occurs when the body launches an immune system attack against itself, destroying the myelin sheath and leading to immobility among sufferers.
Dr Jona Chan, from the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, said his team had identified the protein that underpins the formation of myelin.
He said: "It plays a vital role in the overall health and function of the nervous system, and its degeneration plays a role in a number of diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, peripheral neuropathies and even in spinal cord injury."
Par-3 sits at one end of myelin-forming cells, called Schwann cells, making contact with the nerve fibre to be insulated. There it acts as an "organising centre", bringing together key proteins essential for myelination.
When this centre was disrupted, Schwann cells could not form myelin properly, the researchers reported in the journal Science. Manipulating the Par-3 pathway could help the re-myelination of damaged nerves, said Dr Chan.
The discovery was welcomed by MS charities, who said it may form the basis of future research into a cure for the disease.
Mark Hazelwood, director of the MS Society Scotland, said: "It can only be another step along the road to understanding what happens with MS. We would welcome this and hope that it is something researchers pick up on."
David Harrison, spokesman for the MS Society, added: "This is something that really adds to our knowledge of the disease. One has to be careful not to get too overexcited but it is clearly an important piece of research. What one now has to hope is that will help to inform research into potential treatments."
Earlier this year, scientists found that statins, a cholesterol-lowering drug used to prevent heart disease, may also be effective in providing therapy for multiple sclerosis.
Laboratory tests on mice found that one popular statin, Lipitor, when given in combination with the MS drug Copaxone, worked synergistically to prevent or reduce paralysis in the animals.
However, claims of a "miracle cure" were discredited in September after a 20-year-old who said she had walked for the first time in five years after receiving the treatment in Holland said it was a scam.
Amanda Bryson, 20, received the therapy last year and saw a rush of MS sufferers pay for the same treatment. But her condition has since deteriorated so much she is confined to a wheelchair.
http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/73550.html
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