Patients with multiple sclerosis can suffer from inflammation, and a new study aims to see if changing one’s gut microbiome can help.
The Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center, the Multiple Sclerosis Treatment Center at Griffin Hospital and Yale University are conducting the study, and they need volunteers to test their microbiome theory.
Volunteers must have multiple sclerosis, which affects the central nervous system, and be between the ages of 18 and 40. During the study, volunteers will consume oral capsules containing fecal matter from healthy donors.
Christian Meagher, communications specialist with Griffin Hospital in Derby, said the goal is to determine if changing the bacteria in MS patients’ intestines can safely and effectively slow inflammation.
According to Meagher, some studies have shown that an “imbalance of intestinal bacteria can lead to inflammation in the immune system.” The hope is that altering these patients’ microbiome will cure or slow the progression of this inflammation.
Volunteers will be administered 30 oral capsules with fecal material from healthy individuals, and the study team will then investigate the treatment’s impact.
For the study, volunteers must visit Griffin Hospital eight times in four months. The study will include a clinical screening, a visit when each volunteer must swallow 30 capsules, and then visits for physical exams, blood and stool samples and surveys, Meagher said.
Volunteers will be paid $800. The state Department of Public Health is providing funding for the study, which is being led by Joseph Guarnaccia, MD, of the Multiple Sclerosis Treatment Center at Griffin Hospital.
For more information, contact Guarnaccia at 203-732-1290 or at msteatmentcenters@griffinhealth.org.
