Researchers confirm link between MS and a gene linked to vitamin D

Investigators in the United Kingdom and Canada report an association between a rare variation of a gene that controls vitamin D levels and the development of MS in rare families with multiple members who have the disease. This gene variation causes dysfunction that leads to vitamin D deficiency, and the same variant was previously reported in two Norwegian families. Drs. George Ebers, Sreeram Ramagopalan (University of Oxford) and colleagues report their findings in the Annals of Neurology, Accepted manuscript online, November 25). Read a summary of the study on the web site of the MS Society of the United Kingdom, which funded the study along with the Wellcome Trust.

This gene was previously suspected to play a role in MS susceptibility based on a large-scale Australian genome study, along with many other gene variations that contribute to MS susceptibility. (Read about the largest genome-wide study yet, reported earlier this year.) Research is increasingly pointing to reduced levels of vitamin D in the blood as one factor that can increase the risk of developing MS. The National MS Society (USA) is funding several projects in this area, including a new clinical trial getting underway to test whether vitamin D can reduce disease activity in people who have MS. Read more about what we know about causes of MS.

Next week, the Society is convening an international summit in Chicago discussing whether it is possible to prevent MS using vitamin D. Register for a webcast to be held December 13, 2011 in conjunction with this meeting, featuring internationally prominent MS investigators discussing key MS research to follow in 2012.

Positive Results Announced from Second Phase III Study of Alemtuzumab in MS

Genzyme has announced that the experimental intravenous therapy alemtuzumab (with a proposed brand name Lemtrada™) met two primary endpoints by significantly reducing relapse rates and the worsening of disability in a two-year study comparing alemtuzumab to standard subcutaneous dosing of Rebif® (interferon beta-1a, EMD Serono Inc. and Pfizer). The study, called CARE-MS II, involved 840 people with relapsing-remitting MS. The results were announced in a November 14, 2011 press release, which also indicated that the company plans to apply in early 2012 to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for marketing approval. Data analysis is ongoing and the company expects to provide a full report at an upcoming medical meeting. Alemtuzumab has been designated by the FDA as a “Fast Track Product,” which should expedite its future review.

Mom's Story

Mom's Story, A Child Learns About MS* featured at Barnes and Noble, 90th and Shea, Scottsdale, AZ  on December 6, 6:30-8:00 pm.

Discussion with three authors, including Mary Jo Nickum, about memoir writing. We will sell and sign our books after the talks.

*Ten percent of the net proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Mary Nickum

Mom's Story to be featured at Barnes and Noble. Mary Nickum

Phase 3 trial of BG-12

Biogen Idec announced that the experimental oral therapy BG-12 significantly reduced the average number of annual MS relapses in a two-year, Phase III clinical trial of more than 1400 people with relapsing-remitting MS. Although its exact mode of action is not known, BG-12 is thought to inhibit immune cells and molecules involved in MS attacks on the brain and spinal cord. The results of the CONFIRM study were announced in an October 26 press release. Data analysis is ongoing and the company expects to provide a full report at an upcoming medical meeting. Positive results from another Phase 3 trial of BG-12 were also announced this year, paving the way for a potential application for marketing approval.


Full details and evaluation of this study should help to define further the safety and promise of BG-12 as a potential therapy for relapsing MS. According to the company press release, these positive results set the stage for upcoming filings for marketing approval from drug regulatory agencies.

A Must-See Documentary on the History of America’s Disability Rights Movement

On October 27, 2011 at 10pm (Eastern Time), PBS will feature Lives Worth Living, an independent film that explores the challenges people with disabilities encountered before having equal access to schools, apartment buildings, and public transportation. Produced and directed by Eric Neudel, the film is told from the perspective of the disability rights movement’s pioneers, legislators, and other important advocates who for decades fought for equal rights and were victorious in enacting the Americans with Disabilities Act—landmark legislation that guarantees people with disabilities the equal access they deserve.

This powerful and moving film is made possible through the Emmy® Award-winning PBS series, Independent Lens. On October 27, be sure to tune in and watch a transformative film about the powerful movement that vastly improved the conditions for people living with a disability in the United States.

Research Identifies How Vitamin D Combats MS

New research has indicated that vitamin D directly terminates the production of a disease-causing protein, a discovery that may explain the association between levels of vitamin D in a person’s body and the person’s ability to resist or minimize the effects of MS.

According to the investigators, a collaborative team of scientists from the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and Stanford University, the mechanism they identify suggests what might be a new path toward pharmaceutical treatment of MS, as well as therapies for other autoimmune diseases. The mechanism identified by the research team works like this:

During MS (“EAE” in mice), a damaging protein called interleukin-17 (IL-17) is produced by immune cells in the brain.

After vitamin D binds to its receptor, the receptor parks itself on the gene that encodes IL-17.

By doing so, the vitamin D receptor occupies a site normally reserved for a protein called NFAT, which is required to turn the IL-17 gene on.

The gene stays off and IL-17 levels plummet.

At the same time, the vitamin D receptor turns on another gene, whose product generates suppressive T cells that combat the destructive action of their IL-17-producing counterparts.

The study is published in the September issue of the journal Molecular and Cellular Biology.