Grant: Doctoral Research Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

The immune system protects the body from intruders (e.g., viruses and bacteria). However, sometimes, healthy tissue might be accidentally mistaken for an intruder and become the target of immune system attack. This is associated with the onset of diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) disease. Researchers recently confirmed that pediatric patients with relapsing MOG disease represent a distinct population from those with MS; previously, patients with relapsing MOG may have been misdiagnosed with MS. MOG disease can either be relapsing or monophasic (i.e., a single demyelinating event), unlike pediatric MS which typically follows a relapsing course. MOG is produced exclusively in the brain and spinal cord. It is involved in the production of myelin, an insulating cover that permits electrical impulses to be conducted quickly along nerves for efficient communication between brain regions. Given that the myelin sheath is damaged in both MS and MOG disease, both conditions are called demyelinating diseases. Pediatric demyelinating diseases are diagnosed when the first attack is experienced before age 18. We have studied pediatric MS and identified challenges with organizing information and processing speed, among other cognitive deficits. What remains unclear is whether pediatric patients with MS and relapsing MOG disease have comparable patterns of cognitive function. The objective of our study is to understand the cognitive profile of patients with relapsing MOG disease. We will compare patient groups as well as patients with relapsing MOG and matched healthy participants. We will then examine patterns of brain growth in pediatric patients with MS and relapsing MOG disease. We will also evaluate whether brain changes due to these pediatric demyelinating diseases are associated with poorer cognitive performance in both patient groups. Methods include computerized cognitive testing and magnetic-resonance imaging (MRI).