Relieving the epigenetic blockade in progressive MS: making remyelination accessible again

The disease course in progressive MS patients (pMS) is characterized by ongoing neurodegeneration accompanied by a gradual increase in disability. Current drugs for MS mainly target the inflammatory component of the disease and are not effective in treating pMS. Thus, there is a great need for innovative approaches leading to a better understanding of the pathophysiology of pMS in order to develop new therapeutic targets to stimulate recovery and stop or reverse disease progression. Brain samples from deceased pMS patients who donated their bodies for scientific research were used for this research. The DNA was isolated from the brain and screened for changes "on top of" the DNA. In this thesis it is showed that the DNA piece coding for MBP, one of the most important genes for myelin, is blocked in MS brain samples. This means that the cells cannot make new myelin and thus repair of the myelin damage cannot occur.