The exact cause and mechanisms underlying the development of multiple sclerosis (MS) are poorly understood, but we know it is driven by a complex interplay between genes and environmental factors.
The genetic risk factors of MS strongly implicate immune cells and vascular cells (cells of the heart and blood vessels) in driving MS initiation. Despite this, few studies have explored the role that vascular cells play in disease development.
Dr Alastair Fortune and his team aim to determine how MS genes can alter pericytes (brain vascular cells) even before immune cell activation can damage them. They will generate pericytes from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) – immature cells that can produce any cell type in the body – from people with and without MS, and compare their function.
Blood flow is altered in people with MS, and the team will determine whether this is due to DNA-programmed differences in MS pericytes. They will also investigate how pericytes respond to an MS lesion-like environment.
This project aims to determine whether and how pericytes contribute to blood vessel abnormalities in people with MS.
$24,964
2025
1 year – starting 2025
Current project
