The Wall Street Journal takes a close look at Biogen Idec's preclinical program for a new drug designed to repair the damage wrought by multiple sclerosis. Evidently a first for any developer, the biotech's researchers are exploring the therapeutic value of an antibody that inhibits the Lingo molecule from blocking the development of new myelin. Myelin is damaged by MS, triggering a range of symptoms including numbness and paralysis.
"When we block Lingo function, we can see robust oligodendrocyte differentiation, and they interact with the axon for remylination," biologist Sha Mi tells the Journal.
Biogen Idec, which already makes a therapy to treat MS, plans to wrap toxicity studies soon and file an IND in the fourth quarter, with human trials to follow. That would set the stage for proof-of-concept studies to determine if the biotech company is on to the next big thing in MS.
- read the article in the Wall Street Journal