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Project

Multiple sclerosis: from genetic and immunological profile to personalized medicine.

Over the past few years, researchers and clinicians in MS have made substantial progress in understanding and treating multiple sclerosis (MS). First, more than 110 genetic risk factors for MS have been identified. These risk factors point to a crucial role of the immune system and indicate new targets for treatments. Secondly, we start to understand some of the important differences between patients that are remarkable in MS. For others, such as the progression of disease that ranges from mild disease to becoming wheel-chair bound quite rapidly with a major impact on the patient’s life, this remains a challenge. Lastly, we moved from a situation where hardly anything could be done for the patient to a situation where the clinician is faced with the best choice between different treatments, each with their own balance between efficacy and safety. The missing piece of information is how these genetic, clinical and treatment aspects relate to each other and how we can translate this information into the best treatment choice for each patient at each time (personalized medicine). With this challenge in mind, we determine the immunological signature of current treatments on the one hand and of groups of patients that differ in genetic make-up or in rate of progression of disease on the other hand. We aim to combine both and establish which genetic or clinical factors define groups of patients that may benefit most from a particular treatment.

Date:1 Jan 2015 →  31 Dec 2018
Keywords:Multiple sclerose
Disciplines:Laboratory medicine, Palliative care and end-of-life care, Regenerative medicine, Other basic sciences, Other health sciences, Nursing, Other paramedical sciences, Other translational sciences, Other medical and health sciences