Multiple Sclerosis and Chemokines: Prospects for Therapeutic and Prophylactic Intervention

Multiple Sclerosis and Chemokines: Prospects for Therapeutic and Prophylactic Intervention
July 9-10, 2001
Chevy Chase, Maryland

Co-sponsored by the NINDS, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Berlex, ChemoCentryx, Merck, Schering Plough, and Serono

The workshop entitled, "Multiple sclerosis and chemokines: prospects for therapeutic and prophylactic intervention," was co-sponsored by NINDS, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Berlex, ChemoCentryx, Merck, Schering Plough, and Serono on July 9-10, 2001, in Chevy Chase, Maryland, to articulate the current state of the art and provide future directions. It is hypothesized that chemokines and their receptors are involved in the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis (MS), and that chemokine receptor blockade might be a feasible, near-term strategy for modulating disease course. However, there are substantial challenges: MS is a complex poorly-understood disease and the chemokine field is elaborate and complicated. Experts from both fields, MS and chemokines, attended. The synopsis of this meeting was published in Trends in Immunology, Vol. 22, No. 11, November 2001.