Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a condition where a person’s immune system attacks the brain and spinal cord. Robust evidence shows that B cells, a type of immune cell, are important to cause attacks of MS. B cells produce immune responses to specific targets like viruses or bacteria but can also react to our own body, resulting in autoimmune disease.
B cells have several essential functions, including producing antibodies. Antibodies are small proteins that recognise and bind to specific targets, to direct other immune cells how to respond to infections.
The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which can cause glandular fever, is important for the development of MS. This project uses laboratory-made proteins that mimic natural antibodies (recombinant antibodies) to identify and study the targets for B cells, including parts of EBV. Identifying the targets recognised by B cells in MS may help to diagnose the disease, identify people at higher risk of MS, and develop targeted therapies to be used in future.
Dr Trend and her team have made strong progress in developing the tools needed to study antibodies in detail. One of their major achievements is the successful creation of a large collection of laboratory‑made antibodies based on immune cells from people with MS. These antibodies provide a powerful tool for understanding how the immune system reacts in MS.
The team has also developed and refined laboratory methods to test how these antibodies interact with different proteins. This includes proteins found in the brain and proteins made by viruses that have previously been linked to MS. Establishing these methods is an important step, as it lets the research team carefully and reliably study immune responses that may contribute to MS.
The project has moved from the development and preparation phase to detailed testing. Over the next 12 months, Dr Trend and her team will finish purifying the collection of antibodies they have produced and then test the binding of the antibodies to proteins in human brain tissue and to viral proteins linked to MS. This will let them assess what the antibodies specifically bind to and produce final datasets for further analyses.
Last updated 31 March 2026
Dr Tao Wang
Professor Martyn French
Professor Allan Kermode
Dr Jonatan Leffler
$249,530
2024
3 years
Current project
