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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Ian Sample Science editor

‘Exciting’ clinical results offer hope for new class of MS therapies

Blue, red and orange illustration
An illustration of damaged nerve cells caused by the degenerative disease multiple sclerosis. Immune system cells (microglia, orange) have attacked the nerve cell sheaths (myelin), resulting in damaged myelin (red) and disturbed signalling function between the nerves cells (neurons, blue). Photograph: Juan Gaertner/Science Photo Library/Getty Images/Science Photo Library RF

Early results from a clinical trial suggest that a common diabetes drug taken with an antihistamine can partially repair damage in the nervous system that drives disability in multiple sclerosis.

While the effect was too small for patients to notice a benefit after six months, tests did reveal improvements in nerve function, raising hopes that damage to the protective coatings around nerve fibres might be reversed with drugs.

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