The UK Multiple Sclerosis Tissue Bank

The graph below shows the rate at which we have accrued tissue from 246 donors that had MS (red line) and 29 subjects without the condition (blue line) over the period 1998 to March 2005. With each and every one of these cases we are reminded of the privileged position that we occupy in being able to carry out the last wishes of the people registered with our donor scheme and the strength and determination of the donor's families in allowing us to carry out those wishes.

Our procedure for the rapid retrieval of donated brain and spinal cord was effective in procuring these tissues from 84% of the MS donors and 74% of the control donors within 48hours of death. In 63% of the MS cases and 55% of the control cases, the tissues were preserved within 24 hours of death. This demonstrates the willingness of a range of professionals (general practitioners, nurses, pathologists, coroner’s officers, funeral directors etc) to help us to fulfil the last wishes of generous individuals registered on the donor scheme.

A resource for those scientists able to use tissue in their research:

The Tissue Bank continues to act as an essential resource for research on multiple sclerosis. The number of projects that are being supported has risen steadily until at the end of June 2005, the Tissue Bank had provided 89 separate research projects with samples of tissue.

Year of operation	Total Number of research projects supplied with tissue
1998	8
1999	16
2000	28
2001	31
2002	39
2003	59
2004	84
2005 (to June)	89

Tissue from 170 (69%) of the 246 donors that had MS and 22 (76%) of the 29 donors that did not have the condition has already been used in research.

MS lesion - scene of a crime?

Scientists studying MS lesions are a little like crime scene investigators examining scenes of crime: both identify and piece together fragments of relevant evidence in an effort to come up with a sequence of events that culminated in injury. For MS researchers, part of solving the crime is to understand (1) the way in which myelin and axons (an extension of a nerve cell along which impulses travel) are damaged; and, (2) how exactly the brain repairs itself. The ultimate aim of all research is to develop therapies that will halt the first and promote the second.

The crime scene for MS researchers is complicated for a number of reasons:

It may be that more than one culprit is responsible for the injury we will learn of two possible ways in which axons may be damaged (project 1 and 2).
The culprit(s) causing damage to axons may be different to those that are injuring myelin - we learn about antibodies that may attack myelin (project 3).
Changes will occur as a scene of destruction transforms into one of repair - we learn about one change that is vital to the function of axons (project 4).
Molecules and cells designed to be of benefit may actually hamper repair - we learn how clotting and scarring may hinder remyelination (projects 5 and 6).

page 2

page 1/ page 2/ page 3/ page 4/ /page 5

The UK Multiple Sclerosis Tissue Bank
Division of Neuroscience and Mental Health
Imperial College London
Hammersmith Campus
Du Cane Road
London W12 0NN

Tel: 020 7594 9734
Fax: 020 7594 9735

E-mail: ukmstissuebank@imperial.ac.uk

The UK Multiple Sclerosis Tissue Bank is funded by the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, registered charity 207495.