Hee hee! Almost a year old thread... Interesting subject though.

Beta-1b - Betaseron. Made from e coli...
Beta-1a - Avonex/Rebif. Made from chinese hamster ovaries.
COP-I - copaxone. Chemically derived.

Do any of these work? I don't know. I don't take one, and at the rate I'm progressing, MS is the least of my worries medically. I've had it for 20 years.

I remember vividly when beta-1b got FDA approval in 1993. We were shocked (a group of MS'ers all over the country who were following the trials closely). A 30% chance of a 30% reduction in relapses and lesions... It wasn't a miracle drug. Far from it.

I still entered the lottery for beta-1b. Drew such a high number it was an additional 15 month wait from August 1993. I lost interest.

My bets were on Dr. Ted Yednock's work with monoclonal antibodies. Nope. Not then. I've heard the first two letters of TYsabri, however, are the initials of its founder...

Tom