Progressive multiple sclerosis marker uncovered in mouse study

A collaboration of researchers from across the USA has uncovered two closely related cytokines that may help explain why certain patients develop progressive multiple sclerosis, the most severe form of the disease. In a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the immunoregulatory cytokine MIF and its related protein D-DT were found to be associated with progressive multiple sclerosis in mice models. In addition, inducing MIF or D-DT deficiency was observed to improve disease severity in mice. The authors hypothesize that their findings may, one day, lead to a genetic test able to identify multiple sclerosis...