Researchers at the Cells-in-Motion Cluster of Excellence have visualized inflammation in the brain of mice (left) and of multiple sclerosis patients (right). To do so, they labelled specific enzymes (MMPs).
- Reprinted with permission from Gerwien and Hermann et al., Sci. Transl. Med. 8, 364ra152 (2016) 9 November 2016
The ultimate aim in biomedical research is the transfer of results from experiments carried out in animals to patients. Researchers at the Cells-in-Motion Cluster of Excellence (CiM) at the University of Münster have succeeded in doing so. For the first time, they have been able to image ongoing inflammation in the brain of patients suffering from multiple sclerosis (MS). This involved specialists from different disciplines working together in a unique way over several years, combining immunology, neurology and imaging technologies ranging from microscopy to whole-body imaging. The consequences of an inflammation in the brain can already be shown using a clinically established process: magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Making the inflammation itself visible too could, in future, help not only to more accurately diagnose multiple sclerosis patients but also to monitor therapies and apply them in a more specific way. The study has been published in the prestigious journal "Science Translational Medicine".
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