Mayo Clinic team uses Ab to trigger remyelination

Researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Minneapolis, USA, say that a low-dose administration of a human antibody has been shown to repair the myelin sheath in mouse models of multiple sclerosis. The team said that the genetically-engineered antibody binds to both myelin and the surface of neuronal and nerve cells, thereby triggering remyelination that lasted for a period of five weeks.

The scientists, who announced their findings at the American Neurological Association's annual meeting in Washington DC, said that a minimum dose of 25mcg/kg was required to trigger myelin recovery and that this would be equivalent to around 2mg/kg in humans. They added that this effect was observed even when the antibody was combined with the immunomodulator methylprednisolone, which is commonly used in the treatment of MS patients.

They also reported that, in terms of developing the drug, they have already proved in mouse models that it is non-toxic even when administered at 4,000 times the minimal therapeutic dose.