Читать книгу The SAGE Encyclopedia of Stem Cell Research - Группа авторов - Страница 424

With the cause of the immune mediated inflammatory disease attacking myelinated axons in the central nervous system (CNS) still not known, multiple sclerosis (MS) has been under constant research for advances in treatment options and new understanding about the disease. The major areas of research over the years have been the following:

 New understandings about the genetics of the disease

 Understanding of how nerve cells are injured and how this injury might be prevented or reversed

 More drug treatment options

 New techniques to repair the damage caused by MS

 New information about the potential causes of the disease

Clinical trials are conducted to collect data regarding the safety and efficacy of new drugs and therapies. Studies pass several steps and stages requiring extensive laboratory research that can involve years of experiments in animals and human cells. If the initial laboratory research is successful and approved for further research by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), human testing of experimental drugs begins and is conducted in four phases. Several treatments are under investigation for multiple sclerosis and are anticipated to improve function, curtail attacks, or limit the progression of the underlying disease.

Research in several disease-modifying procedures and drugs is also under way, with clinical trials testing potential therapies believed to modify the natural course of the disease instead of targeting the symptoms or the recovery from relapses. Each phase in the study of new treatments is considered a separate trial and FDA approval is required for continuing into the next phase. Two key players devoted to research in MS are the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in the United States.