According to an article from Neuroscience News, a new discovery may help explain why men are less likely to develop multiple sclerosis than women. The new information may also be useful for helping treat women with the condition.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a condition in which the myelin sheath, and insulating cover that surrounds nerve cells, becomes damaged. This damage affects the ability of the nerve cells to communicate, which can cause significant psychiatric and physical problems. People may have issues with vision, muscle weakness, and problems with coordination. As a long term condition, the symptoms tend to get progressively worse over time. This eventually can lead to debilitating problems with movement. It has long been known that women are more susceptible to the condition than men. To learn more about multiple sclerosis, click here.
New research has revealed that a ‘guardian’ molecule, triggered by the presence of testosterone, can serve a protective role for men from MS. More interestingly, in a mouse model of the disease, female mice that were treated with this molecule saw their symptoms disappear. This evidence could suggest a critical new treatment approach for MS. Currently, treatments are useful in restoring function after an episode and delaying the worsening of symptoms, but there is no real cure for the disease. Women are three or four times more susceptible to MS, and while testosterone was linked with a protective effect, this is the first time that the underlying mechanism was understood.
In MS, the body’s own immune system begins attacking the myelin sheath. The guardian molecule is known as cytokine IL-33, which releases are series of chemicals that prevents the creation of Th17 cells, a type of immune cell that is responsible for damaging the myelin sheath.
