A phloretin-based nutraceutical to promote lesion repair in multiple sclerosis. (R-13223)

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is the most common non-traumatic neurological condition affecting young adults. An effective cure is lacking, since available therapies can reduce disease activity but are unable to stop neurological decline as disease advances. Therefore, there is an urgent need for therapies that are not only effective in the early relapse-remitting stage of the disease, but also in the chronic stage when endogenous repair mechanisms frequently fail. Flavonoids form one of the largest phytonutrient families and are described to possess antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and regenerative properties. Hence, they represent a promising strategy to stop lesion progression in MS. Interestingly, our research group has identified a flavonoid named phloretin, commonly found in apples, as a promising natural compound to halt inflammation and boost central nervous system (CNS) repair. Instead of only exploiting the beneficial properties of one single flavonoid, this project aims to combine the individual strengths of different flavonoids to create a mixture that could provide better therapeutic outcomes. I hypothesize that a mixture of flavonoids, acting synergistically by targeting different pathways underlying the MS pathology, can efficiently promote CNS repair. By using innovative state-of-the-art techniques, and preclinical MS models, the findings obtained in this project can pave the way to a novel natural therapy for MS.

Keywords:lesion repair, multiple sclerosis, phloretin-based nutraceutical

Disciplines:Microbiome, Inflammation, Innate immunity, Neurological and neuromuscular diseases, Immunomodulation therapy