The cold could reduce the symptoms of multiple sclerosis by concentrating the body’s energy resources on maintaining its body temperature.
- Further research will be needed before considering a clinical application of this discovery.
- Placed in a cold environment, mice with multiple sclerosis had fewer symptoms.
In France, 110,000 people are affected by multiple sclerosis according to National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), making it the leading cause of severe non-traumatic disability in young adults. Currently, there is no treatment to cure this disease but only to relieve patients and improve their quality of life. According to a new study published in the journal Cell Metabolismthe cold could be a new therapeutic option to reduce the symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
Multiple sclerosis: the immune system attacks its own cells
Multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system and leads to immune system dysfunction. This no longer protects the patient from external attacks and even turns against his own cells, attacking the myelin that surrounds and protects the nerve fibers. This phenomenon causes lesions that prevent the nerve fibers from correctly transmitting the messages sent by the brain to the rest of the body, and vice versa. Patients with this disease can suffer from various problems such as motor, sensory, cognitive, etc. In the more or less long term, these disorders can progress to an irreversible handicap.
Work carried out on mice placed in an environment at 10 degrees
To carry out their work, the scientists started from the “life history theory” invented in the 1950s. This postulates that the organism concentrates on growth and reproduction only when the environment is favorable to it. . Otherwise, it abandons its primary functions because all its energy resources are reserved for defense against external attacks.
In multiple sclerosis, the immune system is faulty. The researchers therefore conducted experiments on mice to see if exposure to cold – an unfavorable environment – caused their body to divert its energy resources from the immune system to maintaining body heat. That is, if the immune system stopped attacking its own cells and focused on maintaining its body temperature. To do this, they gradually placed mice suffering from a model of human multiple sclerosis in a cold environment at 10 degrees.
An improvement in the symptoms of the disease thanks to the cold
“After a few days, we observed a marked improvement in the clinical severity of the disease, as well as the extent of demyelination observed in the central nervous system.explains Doron Merkler, one of the authors of the study. The animals had no difficulty in maintaining their body temperature at a normal level, but, singularly, the symptoms of locomotor disorders decreased dramatically, ranging from the inability to walk on their hind legs to a slight paralysis of the tail”. The results are therefore convincing: in contact with low temperatures, the immune system no longer attacks the myelin which surrounds and protects the nerve fibers and the patients therefore have fewer symptoms of the disease. Indeed, as the body is obliged to increase its metabolism to maintain its heat, it no longer has resources for its other actions, in particular those harmful in the context of multiple sclerosis. The cold therefore leads to a decrease in harmful immune cells and improves the symptoms of the disease.
The authors nevertheless note that exposure to cold increases susceptibility to certain infections. Before considering a clinical application of this discovery, they will therefore continue their research. The ultimate goal is for patients to benefit from the benefits of cold without its harmful effects.
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