Free Republic

UCI researchers have found that a simple sugar, N-acetylglucosamine, reduces multiple inflammation and neurodegeneration markers in people who suffer from multiple sclerosis (MS). In addition, they also found this dietary supplement improved neurological function in 30% of patients. A major issue with current therapies in MS is the inability to treat chronic-active neuroinflammation in the brain and the associated failure to repair the loss of myelin that covers and protects axons, the electrical wires of the brain. Over time, this leads to permanent nerve cell damage and slow progressive loss of neurological function in patients. "Our previous studies in mice...

What if an over-the-counter allergy medicine could help halt and even reverse multiple sclerosis? And if it did, could patients return to their full capacity? Those were some of the questions posed by Jonah Chan, Ph.D., and Ari Green, MD. The two had discovered in the lab that the medication clemastine—originally approved as an antihistamine—could repair myelin, the protective insulation around nerve fibers that is damaged in MS. That early discovery in Chan's lab, in which clemastine was shown to stimulate the differentiation of myelin-making stem cells, led to clinical trials to test the therapy in people. Surprisingly, these were...

WASHINGTON — How fast you can throw a ball or run or swerve a steering wheel depends on how speedily brain cells fire off commands to muscles. Fast firing depends on good insulation for your brain’s wiring.Now research suggests that in middle age, even healthy people begin to lose some of that insulation in a motor-control part of the brain — at the same rate that their speed subtly slows.And while that may sound depressing, keep reading. The research points to yet another reason to stay physically and mentally active: An exercised brain may spot fraying insulation quicker and signal...

It's more than just achy joints and arthritis, researchers sayDuring this year's baseball playoffs, Chicago White Sox outfielder Ken Griffey Jr., 38, threw a picture-perfect strike from center field to home plate to stop an opposing player from scoring. The White Sox ultimately won the game by a single run and clinched the division title. Had Griffey been 40, it could be argued, he might not have made the throw in time. That's because in middle age, we begin to lose myelin — the fatty sheath of "insulation" that coats our nerve axons and allows for fast signaling bursts in...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Scientists intrigued by the fact that multiple sclerosis can slip into remission when women are pregnant said on Tuesday a pregnancy-related hormone may offer great promise for treating the neurological disease. Researchers at the University of Calgary said a study involving mice showed that a hormone called prolactin triggers production of myelin, a fatty substance that insulates nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. In multiple sclerosis, the immune system, which normally protects the body, is believed to attack the myelin that coats nerve cells, causing a worsening loss of sensation and movement that can range...