Finding biological markers of MS for better diagnosis and treatment

Over recent decades, the clinical diagnosis of MS has evolved and improved by including imaging and lumbar puncture results in the diagnostic criteria. However, because less invasive blood-based biological signs (biomarkers) for diagnosing MS are not yet available, the diagnosis process is time-consuming and prevents MS from being treated from the earliest stage. To overcome this challenge, a better understanding of the molecular basis of MS is needed. This will help identify the key points of interventions for stopping the underlying mechanisms that trigger and/or drive MS disease activities.

Advanced technologies can now measure thousands of molecules for evaluation as biomarkers, including proteins that play key roles in most biological pathways.

Dr Lin’s previous PhD work combined large sets of biological data with clinical data in the search for biomarkers of MS and found proteins that were associated with MS.

For this project, Dr Lin and his team will expand on this work using large international datasets and the latest statistical methods to validate these identified proteins as biomarkers of MS and to find new biomarkers. He will also carry out experiments to measure and analyse proteins in people with and without MS and examine how the proteins interact with other MS-related molecules as well as how they contribute to MS risk. These proteins may present excellent targets for innovative diagnostic methods and therapies for MS.