Title: Multimodal Assessment of ReMyelination And Light-chain neurofilament Assay following Demyelination Episodes in Children (MARMALADE-C)
Funder: Action Medical Research

Abstract: Background Multiple sclerosis (MS) affects around 130,000 people in the UK and is the most common cause of neurological disability in young adults. It is estimated that in five to 10 per cent of people with MS, symptoms start before the age of 16. MS is caused by the body's immune system mistakenly attacking the fatty sheaths made of myelin which surround and protect nerve fibres in the brain and spinal cord. This process, known as demyelination, means that nerves can no longer carry messages around the body effectively. Symptoms of MS are many and varied and include problems with vision, dizziness and loss of balance, pain, tiredness and difficulties with memory or thinking. Over time there can also be loss of movement control. Together these symptoms can cause significant disability and long-term difficulties for children with MS and their families. The brain is able to repair the damaged myelin sheaths to some extent, however, the repair process becomes less effective with age. Currently, drug treatments to help this brain repair are being tested in adults with MS. These researchers plan to study remyelination in children with MS to help determine whether they could benefit from the brain repair treatments being tested in adults. The research project This project will test whether children with MS are able to repair their brain through remyelination more effectively than adults with the same condition. The team will recruit 30 children with MS aged between five and 18 years and 30 age and sex-matched healthy controls. The children will be assessed at the start of the study and after one year using brain scans, specialist eye testing and a blood test to see how their disease progresses. The results will be compared to those from a similar study conducted in adults. Gaining a better understanding of remyelination in children with MS will guide future research in this field, for example, whether remyelinating drug treatments should be tested in children with MS. This fellowship is co-funded by Action Medical Research and the British Paediatric Neurology Association (BPNA). The award holder should be referred to as an Action Medical Research and British Paediatric Neurology Association Research Training Fellow.

Lay abstract: Background Multiple sclerosis (MS) affects around 130,000 people in the UK and is the most common cause of neurological disability in young adults. It is estimated that in five to 10 per cent of people with MS, symptoms start before the age of 16. MS is caused by the body's immune system mistakenly attacking the fatty sheaths made of myelin which surround and protect nerve fibres in the brain and spinal cord. This process, known as demyelination, means that nerves can no longer carry messages around the body effectively. Symptoms of MS are many and varied and include problems with vision, dizziness and loss of balance, pain, tiredness and difficulties with memory or thinking. Over time there can also be loss of movement control. Together these symptoms can cause significant disability and long-term difficulties for children with MS and their families. The brain is able to repair the damaged myelin sheaths to some extent, however, the repair process becomes less effective with age. Currently, drug treatments to help this brain repair are being tested in adults with MS. These researchers plan to study remyelination in children with MS to help determine whether they could benefit from the brain repair treatments being tested in adults. The research project This project will test whether children with MS are able to repair their brain through remyelination more effectively than adults with the same condition. The team will recruit 30 children with MS aged between five and 18 years and 30 age and sex-matched healthy controls. The children will be assessed at the start of the study and after one year using brain scans, specialist eye testing and a blood test to see how their disease progresses. The results will be compared to those from a similar study conducted in adults. Gaining a better understanding of remyelination in children with MS will guide future research in this field, for example, whether remyelinating drug treatments should be tested in children with MS. This fellowship is co-funded by Action Medical Research and the British Paediatric Neurology Association (BPNA). The award holder should be referred to as an Action Medical Research and British Paediatric Neurology Association Research Training Fellow.

Research activity codes: 2.1 BIOLOGICAL AND ENDOGENOUS FACTORS
Health categories: NEUROLOGICAL