New Way to Catch Multiple Sclerosis

By Fraser Cain June 27, 2007 | 6:26:38 PMCategories: Disease, Medicine & Medical Procedures

Multiple sclerosis is a tricky disease to find and diagnose. The first signs can be problems with vision, balance, or even swallowing. The symptoms come and go in the beginning, and it's only in retrospect that the puzzle adds up to a diagnosis of MS. Since people are using their brains at the time they contract the condition, new diagnosis methods need to be developed.

The disease is so prevalent, chances are you know someone suffering from it right now. It affects the neurons in the brain that transmit information, slowly dissolving the myelin sheath that surrounds these neurons. This disrupts the neural pathways and leads to the wide range of symptoms.

Scientists aren't sure what causes MS. One of the most prevalent theories is that it's an autoimmune disease, where the body's own immune system considers this myelin sheath a foreign entity and attacks it.

Researchers from Purdue University have developed a new technique that lets them watch the degradation of the myelin sheath in action. The technique is called "coherent anti-Stokes scattering, or CARS, and it shows how a molecule called lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) lets in an influx of calcium ions into the myelin. This causes increased production of enzymes which break down proteins and molecules in the sheath.

Here's one of the researchers, Dr. Riyi Shi:

"The findings of this study will help us to identify key steps in the progression of the demyelination, which is a hallmark of multiple sclerosis. This information will also facilitate the design of pharmaceutical interventions that slow down or even reverse the development of the debilitating disease."

This still doesn't help explain why the disease happens in the first place, just one of the stages that leads to the deterioration of the myelin. But it could help create a new clinical technique to diagnose MS early.

Their research paper will published this month in the Journal of Neuroscience Research.

Original source: Purdue University News Release

Previous coverage here and here.

http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2007/06/new-way-to-catc.html