Grant: CIHR Fellowship

Multiple sclerosis is a neurological disease affecting numerous patients; more than 2 million people are affected worldwide. Despite many years of research, the cause of this illness is still unknown. The immune system usually provides protection against microbes. However, the immune system in multiple sclerosis patients shows abnormalities and it attacks components of the brain as if they were foreign microbes. The purpose of our study is to identify molecules present in the brain of multiple sclerosis patients that are used by the immune system to attack it. We hope to identify new molecules and cells that could eventually be targeted by future treatments. Our group observed that one particular molecule called interleukin-15 is present in abundance in the brain of patients with multiple sclerosis but not in other patients. Moreover, this molecule is also more elevated in the blood of patients than in healthy volunteers. Our goal is to analyze how this molecule increases the capacity of the immune system to cause damage in the brain of multiple sclerosis patients. A better understanding of the impact of this molecule could help us design a new therapy to treat patients with multiple sclerosis.