Phase 1 trial safely resets patients’ immune systems, reduces attack on myelin protein

text size AAAJune 4, 2013 | by Marla Paul
CHICAGO --- A phase 1 clinical trial for the first treatment to reset the immune system of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients showed the therapy was safe and dramatically reduced patients’ immune systems’ reactivity to myelin by 50 to 75 percent, according to new Northwestern Medicine research...
...In the trial, patients’ white blood cells were filtered out, specially processed and coupled with myelin antigens by a complex GMP manufacturing process developed by the study co-senior authors, Roland Martin, Mireia Sospedra, and Andreas Lutterotti and their team at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf. Then billions of these dead cells secretly carrying the myelin antigens were injected intravenously into the patients. The cells entered the spleen, which filters the blood and helps the body dispose of aging and dying blood cells. During this process, the immune cells start to recognize myelin as a harmless and immune tolerance quickly develops. This was confirmed in the patients by immune assays developed and carried out by the research team in Hamburg.

http://www.northwestern.edu/newscent...l?utm_campaign

Just curious - does this sound like a new/ improved better/gentler Hy-Cy -ish type thing to anyone? Hy-Cy used to "reboot" immune system. Johns Hopkins used to do it. It seemed to help Red Penguins for awhile.

A little bit, but in Hi C, the immune system was totally killed
then rebooted. More dangerous, I think..

This sounds like just another temp fix. We need a cure now,
not another bandaid. Go you SciFi guys!!!!

Hmmm... one of the problems from Mononucleosis can be an enlarged or ruptured spleen? Another hint at a link to Epstein Barr Virus?

I am not sure how similar this is to what is done for folks with certain types of cancers, but if it is, it can be pretty extreme for a while. My sister had a friend that had her immune system basically killed and replaced with cells from a healthy donor. it was a very long and involved process during which she was at high risk for even very basic types of infections. She had a number of rejection complications and other issues during the recovery. She now has a different blood type and has to get all her childhood vaccinations again. I can see this being a good option for folks with progressive varieties of MS, but for those with very mild symptoms and not much disability, its seems a bit extreme.

In this particular trial the immune system is left intact and so not as dangerous as previous treatments where they kill your immune system then reboot it. This one they take out white cells, alter them, and reinject them into your blood stream so that your body starts slowly seeing myelin as normal and nonthreatening... like it's supposed to.

I still wonder why our bodies suddenly decide myelin is foreign and attack it in the first place?