Drug is designed for specific MS patients

HAIFA, Israel, Oct. 11 (UPI) -- Israeli scientists have identified the genes responsible for the positive response of many multiple sclerosis patients to the drug Copaxone.

The findings by researchers from the Israel Institute of Technology, the Weizmann Institute of Science and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries might lead to the development of personalized medicine for multiple sclerosis sufferers.

"Until now, medical treatments for all kinds of diseases have relied on trial-and-error methods to determine dosage and treatment protocols," said Professor Ariel Miller of the Carmel Medical Center in Haifa. In the new research the scientists identified several genes linked with a positive response to the drug.

"We analyzed the DNA sequences in 27 candidate genes from each patient participating in the trial," said Professor Doron Lancet of the Weizmann Institute's Department of Molecular Genetics. "We identified two genes with a high potential for determining the response to Copaxone.

"In the future, it may be possible to use this method to scan the genome of MS sufferers, to predict the response levels in advance and to optimize the dosage and treatment protocol to suit each patient personally."

The research appeared in the journal Pharmacogenetics and Genomics.