2021 年 38 巻 3 号 p. 150-154
Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic demyelinating disease in the central nervous system. The pathogenesis of MS is mainly by cellular and humoral immunity against myelin sheaths. The main cause of disability is derived from secondary progressive phase of MS, which could induce chronic demyelinating slowly expanded lesions together with axonal damage and neuronal loss. Recently, it is considered that the chronic activity of phagocytic macrophages is induced by antibody–producing B cells and T cells in lymphoid tissue in the CNS, which could be the molecular targets of treatment. Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) is an autoimmune disease caused by anti–aquaporin 4 antibody. One of the main cause of tissue injury is mediated by complement–dependent cytotoxicity against astrocytes. Now humoral immunity is the main target in NMOSD, there is several antibody medicines including eculizumab, satralizumab, inebilizumab, and rituximab. In this issue, I would like to focus on the therapeutic strategy of MS and NMOSD by recently developing drugs.
