Dr Steven Petratos's multiple sclerosis research awarded NMSS Alliance grant

Congratulations to Dr Steven Petratos, Department of Medicine, who has been awarded an Alliance grant for €75,000 from the National Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Society via the International Progressive MS Alliance. The award is for research on Progressive MS titled, “Limiting axonal degeneration in a model of multiple sclerosis.”
 Multiple sclerosis (MS) is commonly induced by the specific destruction of the protective sheath of nerve fibres, known as myelin, by immune cells, which mistakenly attack this structure. However, it has been shown that MS does not only consist of this disease pattern but is a multifactorial disease with continual destruction of the nerve fibres even without large numbers of immune cells invading the brain and the spinal cord. Importantly, the molecules which may contribute or initiate such damage in MS are becoming known and by targeting these molecules during MS it may be possible to limit the destruction which occurs to nerve fibres in the brain and spinal cord, promoting a better clinical outcome for individuals suffering with MS. The Petratos group intends to look at how damage occurs in nerve fibres with progressive clinical symptoms in the experimental animal model of MS and attempt to block the molecules that propagate the nerve fibre degeneration using novel strategies to deliver agents to the brain and spinal cord.