Inflammation linked to faster brain cell changes in MS

For the first time, researchers have found that inflammation – something often linked with MS – may actually speed up changes in brain cells that could play a role in how MS progresses.

The study focused on MS brain lesions, which show up as small patches or spots on MRI scans. These lesions are areas where inflammation has happened, or is still happening. The researchers discovered that neurons (the nerve cells in the brain) found in these lesions develop genetic changes at a rate two-and-a-half times faster than neurons in healthy brain areas.

A team from The Florey and University of Melbourne looked closely at what are known as somatic mutations. These are genetic changes that happen as we age – they are not passed down from parents. Some of these mutations can interfere with how well cells work or even cause them to die off.

The researchers compared brain cells from 10 people living with MS and 16 people without MS. They found that neurons in healthy brain areas, or in people without MS, pick up around 17.7 new mutations each year. But in MS lesions, this number jumps to 43.9 mutations each year.

This is a big discovery because it helps explain how inflammation could lead to nerve cell damage in MS, by speeding up these genetic changes over time.