Multiple Sclerosis Discovery: The Podcast Of The Ms Discovery Forum

[intro music]   Host – Dan Keller  Hello, and welcome to Episode Five of Multiple Sclerosis Discovery, the Podcast of the MS Discovery Forum. I’m your host, Dan Keller.    This week’s Podcast features an interview with Dr. Anne Cross, who reflects on the past year in MS research. But to begin, here’s a brief summary of some of the topics we’ve been covering on the MS Discovery Forum at msdiscovery.org.    Researchers have discovered that multiple sclerosis may have something in common with colon cancer; the Wnt pathway. It’s a genetic pathway important in development, stem cell maintenance, and cell differentiation. In colon cancer, the mutation of a mediator gene called APC causes the Wnt pathway to become overactive, leading to tumor formation. Now, researchers have discovered that a loss of function mutation of APC in the brain also leads to an overactive Wnt pathway, ultimately freezing oligodendrocyte progenitor cells in their undifferentiated state.    Next, what disease-modifying therapies should women