(c) Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelonaの研究班
勃起不全治療薬シルデナフィルが，動物実験で多発性硬化症（MS）の症状を著しく軽減した。実験的自己免疫性脳脊髄炎として知られるMSの動物モデルを用いた実験で，発症後にこの薬剤を毎日投与したところ，臨床的徴候が素早く減少し，投与8日目には半数の動物の症状が完全に回復した。MSでは，神経細胞間のコミュニケーション能力が，軸索を取り囲む髄鞘の脱落によって損なわれている。この実験では，脊髄の白質への炎症細胞の浸潤をシルデナフィルが抑え，これにより軸索の損傷が抑えられ，髄鞘の修復を促進したことが示された。（吉田素子）
"Viagra" Could Reduce Multiple Sclerosis Symptoms
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona researchers have discovered that "Viagra" drastically reduces multiple sclerosis symptoms in animal models with the disease. The research, published in Acta Neuropathologica, demonstrates that a practically complete recovery occurs in 50% of the animals after eight days of treatment. Researchers are confident that clinical trials soon will be carried out in patients given that the drug is well tolerated and has been used to treat sexual dysfunction in some multiple sclerosis patients.
Multiple sclerosis is the most common chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system and one of the main causes of disability among young adults. The disease is caused by the presence of multiple focuses of demyelination (loss of myelin sheaths around the axons, affecting the ability of neurons to communicate) and neurodegeneration in different areas of the central nervous system. There is currently no cure for the disease, although some drugs have proven effective in fighting symptoms and preventing it from progressing.
A research team from the UAB Institute of Biotechnology and Biomedicine directed by Dr Agustina García, in collaboration with the research team directed by Dr Juan Hidalgo from the UAB Institute of Neurosciences, has studied the effects of a treatment using sildenafil, sold as "Viagra", in an animal model of multiple sclerosis known as experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Researchers demonstrated that a daily treatment with sildenafil after disease onset quickly reduced clinical signs, with a practically complete recovery in 50% of the cases after eight days of treatment.
［単語和訳］
Viagra：バイアグラ Multiple Sclerosis：多発性硬化症 Symptoms：症状
researchers：研究者 drastically：大幅に animal models：動物モデル Acta Neuropathologica：（ラテン語，神経病理学の学術雑誌の名称） clinical trials：臨床試験 is well tolerated：忍容性が良好である sexual dysfunction：性機能障害
chronic inflammatory disease：慢性炎症性疾患 central nervous system：中枢神経系 disability：障害 multiple：複数の focuses：病巣 demyelination：脱髄 myelin sheaths：髄鞘 axon：軸索 neurons：ニューロン neurodegeneration：神経変性 currently：現在のところ
UAB：Universitat Autònoma de Barcelonaの略 Biotechnology：バイオテクノロジー Biomedicine：生物医学 in collaboration with：～と協力して Neurosciences：神経科学 sildenafil：シルデナフィル experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis：実験的自己免疫性脳脊髄炎 onset：発症 clinical signs：臨床徴候
