Multiple Sclerosis: A Pregnancy Hormone Holds Potential for Treatment

A recent animal study has shown how estriol, a pregnancy hormone may reverse the damage in the brain due to multiple sclerosis.

Highlights:

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease in which the body's immune system attacks the myelin sheath, which protects nerve cells in the brain, optic nerve, and spinal cord
There is no treatment for MS and treatments usually focus on reducing the symptoms and flare-ups of MS
A recent study in mice shows that the administration of estriol, a pregnancy hormone can help restore myelin in the brain

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic disease of the central nervous system. It is thought to be an autoimmune disorder, a condition in which the body attacks itself by mistake. It is an unpredictable disease that affects people differently ().

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‘A study in mice shows how a pregnancy hormone known as estriol could treat multiple sclerosis. #multiplesclerosis #estriol’

Estriol Could Repair Myelin Loss in the Brain

A recent UCLA Health study published in the journal Laboratory Investigation found that administering the pregnancy hormone estriol to a mouse model of multiple sclerosis repaired the loss of myelin in the brain's cortex, a crucial area impacted by multiple sclerosis ().

Inflammation causes the immune system to peel away the protective myelin layer around nerve fibers in the cortex of the brain, impairing electrical signals sent and received by the brain.

Cortical atrophy in MS patients is related to lifelong disability worsening, such as cognitive decline, visual impairment, weakness, and sensory loss.

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How Estriol Could Be a Potential Treatment for Multiple Sclerosis

There are presently no treatments for MS that can heal myelin damage. Instead, these medicines aim to minimize symptom flare-ups and new nerve tissue scarring by targeting inflammation.

Previous research performed by UCLA discovered that estriol, a kind of estrogen hormone released during pregnancy, decreased brain shrinkage and increased cognitive function in MS patients.

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Estriol Can Induce Remyelination of the Brain

Researchers employed estriol to treat a mouse model of MS and discovered that it prevented brain atrophy and produced remyelination in the cortex, showing that the medication can repair damage caused by MS rather than simply slowing myelin degradation.

This is the first study to find a therapy that can restore myelin in the brain, reversing part of the damage caused by MS.

References:

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) - (https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/multiple-sclerosis-ms)
Neuroprotection in cerebral cortex induced by the pregnancy hormone estriol - (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37245852/)

Source-Medindia

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