Uncovering the optimum ways to promote and measure remyelination in people living with multiple sclerosis

Summary

Our research goal is to find treatments capable of delaying, preventing, or reversing disability progression in people living with multiple sclerosis. We are at the exciting stage where the discovery of druggable pathways is leading to clinical trials in which we can observe nerve repair (remyelination) occurring in humans. We are also increasingly recognising the potential impact of demographic and lifestyle factors that impact endogenous remyelination in people with MS. 

Project aims

This PhD leverages the opportunities provided by a funded clinical trial (n=50), alongside an observational cohort study of people living with MS (n=150), to be the first project of its kind to describe the optimum way to precisely capture and track remyelination in both trials and in routine clinical practice. A central tenet of the project will be the demonstration of how remyelination capacity changes as a product of age.

The research will therefore include participants across the lifespan - from paediatric cases of MS to older individuals who have been affected by MS for many years.

The PhD student will acquire expertise in the application and analysis of visual markers of neuronal health (visual evoked potentials, optical coherence tomography, video-oculography), imaging measures of remyelination (using myelin-sensitive MRI sequences) and biomarker analysis. Applicants should be enthusiastic about working with patients, including children, but do not require a clinical background.

Contact details

Dr Nick Cunniffe - ngc26@cam.ac.uk

Opportunities

This project is open to applicants who want to do a:

• PhD