Multiple Sclerosis: Time is myelin

Cortical myelin loss and repair in multiple sclerosis (MS) have been explored in neuropathological studies, but the impact of these processes on neurodegeneration and the irreversible clinical progression of the disease remains unknown.

In this new study, the authors evaluated in-vivo cortical demyelination and remyelination in a large cohort of people with all clinical phenotypes of MS followed-up for 5 years using magnetization transfer imaging (MTI), a technique that has been shown to be sensitive to myelin content changes in the cortex.

Overall, their results highlight the critical role of cortical myelin dynamics in the cascade of events leading to neurodegeneration and to the subsequent accumulation of irreversible disability in MS.

Their findings suggest that early-stage myelin repair compensating for cortical myelin loss has the potential to prevent neuro-axonal loss and its long-term irreversible clinical consequences in people with MS.

Source: Brain