University of California at San Francisco Recruiting MS Patients for Gut Bacteria Study

                                                                  

University of California medical school researchers are looking for multiple sclerosis patients who want to participate in an international study of the bacteria that live in our gut.

The University of California at San Francisco team decided to study the gut microbiome after recent evidence suggested that it is critical in establishing and maintaining immune balance, according to a press release. The effort will be called the International Multiple Sclerosis Microbiome Study.

In mammals, the gut is the largest immune organ, and each person has millions of bacteria in it.

The immune system is defective in MS, turning against the body by attacking the brain and spinal cord. Knowing that the gut is involved in immune system balance, the researchers will investigate whether the microbiome can directly or indirectly impact how MS develops.

Researchers are seeking people with different types of MS. Those with primary progressive MS, or PPMS, will not need to visit the San Francisco medical center.

Those with other types of MS will have to make one visit to San Francisco, New York, Boston or Pittsburgh. The one-time visit will include cognitive and movement assessments, a neurologic examination, and questionnaires about diet.

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