The National MS Society and other organizations support a variety of research tools and information resources that may be useful to you in your research and/or clinical programs.
RESEARCH TOOLS
Multiple Sclerosis Tissue Banks
The Society supports two facilities that store brain and spinal cord tissues, spinal fluid, and other specimens from persons who had MS during their lifetimes. These samples are frozen or otherwise preserved very soon after the death of the donors. The banked tissues are carefully catalogued along with information about the donor's medical history and are made available to qualified investigators.
- Human Brain and Spinal Fluid Resource Center in Los Angeles, California
- The Rocky Mountain MS Center in Colorado
MS DNA Bank
The National MS Society supports a unique DNA bank at the University of California, San Francisco that gathers, holds, and can make available to qualified investigators clinical and genetic information from carefully documented cases of persons with MS and their family members.
Data from the Slifka Study— A Longitudinal Dataset for MS
The Sonya Slifka Longitudinal MS Study involves a representative sample of over 2,000 people with MS, funded by the National MS Society to address a wide variety of research questions. Qualified investigators may apply to the National MS Society to use the Slifka Study interview data and/or blood samples for research projects that are deemed appropriate and of benefit to people with MS. Find out more about the Slifka Study
Atlas of MS Database (from the MSIF)
Information and data on the epidemiology of MS and the availability and accessibility of resources to diagnose, inform, treat, support, manage and rehabilitate people with MS worldwide are available in one database for analysis and comparison at country, regional, and global levels.
Large-scale Patient Database: The Sylvia Lawry Centre
The Sylvia Lawry Centre for MS Research has been building a large-scale database of patient information from over 20,000 patients since 2001. The information is from placebo arms of major clinical trials conducted over the last 20 years, as well as other data as it becomes available. The Centre, originally launched by the Multiple Sclerosis International Federation with co-funding from the National MS Society and other partners, is now open to qualified investigators wishing to develop statistical models, explore hypotheses or check the plausibility of research findings published by other research groups. Download PDF
INFORMATION RESOURCES
- Measures for Use in Clinical Studies of MS
Access some of the most common assessment methods used in clinical studies of MS - MS Clinical Trials in Progress, Recently Completed & Planned (.pdf)
A comprehensive listing of MS clinical trials - MS Clinical Trials Recruiting Participants
Information on MS clinical trials actively recruiting participants, including a description of the trial, entrance criteria and contact information - Rehabilitation Research Headquarters
Tools and resources to enhance rehabilitation research and collaboration - Current Grants Funded by National MS Society, By Topic (.pdf)
- National MS Society’s Research Bulletins
The latest published results and drug pipeline news, written for general audiences - MS International Federation's World of MS Research News
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