Through Martin Leduc
Published on
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In France, 130,000 people of which 80% of young women are affected by this autoimmune disease that is multiple sclerosis, according to the French association of multiple sclerosis (AFSEP).
And the number of patients continues to grow: “every year, there are 2000 new diagnoses who fall”, warns Jocelyne Nouvet-Gyre, president of the AFSEP, contacted by Actu.fr.
But this figure could soon decrease, with the potential emergence of a vaccine.
A virus that causes multiple sclerosis
Scientists at Harvard University have discovered that multiple sclerosis is most likely related to the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which also causes other diseases, such as mononucleosis.
They present their results in a study entitled Longitudinal analysis reveals high prevalence of Epstein-Barr virus associated with multiple sclerosis, published in English, in the journal Sciences.
To arrive at this result, the scientists had access to data from 10 million US Army soldiers, spanning from 1993 to 2013.
In a sample of 801 soldiers with the disease “only one was negative for EBV”, explain the scientists.
This discovery provides compelling data implying that the Epstein-Barr virus triggers multiple sclerosis
However, the discovery is still in its infancy: “EBV infection seems necessary, but not sufficient to trigger the disease”, comment Williams H. Robinson and Lawrence Steinman in an article commenting on the study appeared in the journal Sciences.
In other words, other forces are most certainly at play during the development of multiple sclerosis.
Towards a vaccine and treatments?
But this scientific advance could lead to an improvement in the fight against multiple sclerosis. Modern company announced, January 5, 2022, working on an RNA vaccine.
This one is only in the test phase for the moment, and should not see the light of day for a while. Nevertheless, theclinical trial has just been launched.
“Phase 1 will be conducted at approximately 15 sites in the United States. The main objective is to assess the tolerance of the vaccine in healthy adults between the ages of 18 and 30,” Moderna said in its press release.
The authors of the study, however, remain very vague as to a potential treatment: “Would antivirals targeting EBV provide an effective therapy? This is a possibility, since targeting EBV appears to have many advantages over current treatments.”
As Williams H. Robinson and Lawrence Steinman put it, “Now that the trigger has been discovered, perhaps multiple sclerosis could be eradicated.”
Multiple sclerosis, what is it?
It is a disease that attacks the central nervous system. It usually gets worse slowly and is said to be in “flare-ups”. New symptoms appear one after the other. They first occur punctually until, sometimes settling in the long run.
Inside our body, we have many nerve connections, allowing information to be transmitted from the brain to the rest of the system.
These connections are protected by sheaths called myelin. They are the ones affected by the disease. Thus, the immune system begins to consider them as foreign and destroys them. (This is the principle of the autoimmune reaction).
Jocelyne Nouvet-Gyre, president of the French association of multiple sclerosis (AFSEP), and suffering from the disease compares it to a car engine which would see its wiring disconnected one after the other. “Obviously, that creates problems.”
This disease causes a lot of problems for those who are carriers because of the multiplicity of symptoms. “You can lose your visual acuity, lose mobility, your libido, you are tired all the time, so you lose social ties. This also makes family life complicated …”, lists the president of AFSEP.
Although multiple sclerosis is not hereditary, scientists have discovered that certain genes, transmitted by our parents, could therefore lead to an increased susceptibility to the disease.
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“Nothing is done yet”
“I fear that this announcement will have a terrible effect. Many members call us and think they are going to be healed. This is not on the agenda for the moment, ”regrets Jocelyne Nouvet-Gyre. “Nothing is done yet,” she recalls.
“Even though it has been shortened with scientific advances, it takes a long time to make a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis with certainty. Also, I’m afraid that those who have doubts will ignore it by saying to themselves “it’s good, we have something to fight for”. No, listen to your doubts and do all the necessary examinations, ”warns the president of AFSEP.
At the moment, there is no way to prevent pathology. The only treatments that exist consist of “keeping the flare-ups away from each other”, as Jocelyne Nouvet-Gyre explains.
This progress could therefore, if it is conclusive, be a significant hope in the fight against multiple sclerosis.
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