National MS Society Commits Nearly $8 Million for Targeted Research to Drive Pathways to Cures
January 11, 2023
The National MS Society has committed $7.8 million to launch important new MS research projects as part of our ongoing effort to align the global MS research community around the most promising areas outlined in the
Pathways to Cures roadmap.
These latest financial commitments are part of an annual investment of some $30 million to support 220 new and ongoing MS research studies around the world, including support of the research workforce and leadership for the
International Progressive MS Alliance – a global effort to accelerate the development of effective treatments for people with progressive MS to improve quality of life worldwide.
Fourteen of the new awards stemmed from a targeted request for applications focusing on understanding how pockets of inflammation in the brain drive MS progression. This topic targets a critical gap in the Pathways to Cures priorities of stopping MS, restoring lost function, and ending the disease by preventing more cases. This targeted research initiative on progression-related inflammation is key to being able to stop the disease.
In addition, the Society committed funds to study “long COVID” and other infections in people with MS.
Here are a few examples of the newly committed research projects:
STOPPING MS:
• A team at the Cleveland Clinic is investigating whether activating an immune mechanism will turn off chronic inflammation linked to MS progression.
RESTORING what’s been lost:
• A team at the University of Pennsylvania is investigating features of brain cells called “astrocytes” that could be manipulated to enhance myelin repair.
ENDING MS:
• University of Western Australia researchers are determining if components of the brain that are targeted by the immune system in MS are mistaken as components of the Epstein-Barr virus.
More…
Download a Summary of the Newly Funded Research Projects (.pdf)
Learn more about
Pathways to Cures for MS
Download a list of Society-supported research projects, sorted by location (.pdf)
Download a list of Society-supported research projects, sorted by topic (.pdf)