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Learn more about how the Society aims to stop MS, restore lost function and end MS forever. Genetic variants are just one type of biomarker that could be helpful for predicting who will get MS and how they will respond to treatment. Learn more about MS biomarkers. “HLA-A*03:01 as predictive genetic biomarker for glatiramer acetate treatment response in multiple sclerosis: a retrospective cohort analysis ” by Brian C. Zhang, Tilman Schneider-Hohendorf, Rebecca Elyanow, Beatrice Pignolet, Simon Falk, Christian Wünsch, Marie Deffner, Erik Yusko, Damon May, Daniel Mattox, Eva Dawin, Lisa Ann Gerdes, Florence Bucciarelli, Lisa Revie, Gisela Antony, Sven Jarius, Christiane Seidel, Makbule Senel, Stefan Bittner, Felix Luessi, Joachim Havla, Matthias Knop, Manuel A. Friese, Susanne Rothacher, Anke Salmen, Fumie Hayashi, Roland Henry, Stacy Caillier, Adam Santaniello, University of California San Francisco MS-EPIC Team, German Competence Network Multiple Sclerosis (KKNMS), Maria Seipelt, Christoph Heesen, Sandra Nischwitz, Antonios Bayas, Hayrettin Tumani, Florian Then Bergh, Gerd Meyer zu Hörste, Tania Kümpfel, Catharina C. Gross, Brigitte Wildemann, Martin Kerschensteiner, Ralf Gold, Sven G. Meuth, Frauke Zipp, Bruce A. C. Cree, Jorge Oksenberg, Michael R. Wilson, Stephen L. Hauser, Scott S. Zamvil, Luisa Klotz, Roland Liblau, Harlan Robins, Joseph J. Sabatino, Jr. Heinz Wiendl, and Nicholas Schwab. Published in eBioMedicine (2025). " c-nmssatomrichtext_nmssatomrichtext-host="">In one of the first steps towards personalized medicine for MS, early research identified a genetic marker that predicts response to an MS treatment. This could allow people with MS to get started earlier on effective treatments. Background: A commonly used treatment for MS is glatiramer acetate (GA, also known by its brand names, Copaxone and Glatopa). GA is a long-established and safe disease modifying treatment option. Like other MS drugs, not everyone responds to it, and there is currently no way to predict who will benefit from GA treatment.The Study: Researchers looked for associations between genetic markers and GA treatment response using blood samples and clinical data from many international studies of people with MS. Blood samples from over 3,000 people with MS were studied to track how the immune system responded to GA treatment. Next, health records from nearly 2,000 people with MS were studied to determine the clinical effectiveness of treatment with GA or interferon beta (another common MS drug).Researchers focused on associations with genetic markers in the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) region, which plays a key role in immune function and has been shown to influence MS risk. Results: People with a specific variant (or version) of the HLA-A gene specifically benefited from GA treatment. GA treatment led to a strong and beneficial type of immune response, especially in individuals with the HLA-A*03:01 genetic variant. People also had fewer relapses, less disability progression, and a reduced number of lesions on brain scans (MRI) when compared to people with HLA-A*03:01 who were treated with interferon beta.Results suggest that determining if a person with MS has the HLA-A*03:01 variant prior to treatment initiation could be helpful for determining if they will respond better to GA than interferon beta. Why Does This Matter? This is the first genetic marker identified that predicts response to an MS treatment. It is one of the first steps towards personalized medicine for MS, which would allow people with MS to get started earlier on effective treatments.While it is a promising early step, the test is still in the experimental phase of development, and it is currently unknown when it might be available for clinical use. Learn More… The study was supported in part by a research grant from the National MS Society that funds promising projects aligned with the Pathways to Cures Research Roadmap. Learn more about how the Society aims to stop MS, restore lost function and end MS forever. Genetic variants are just one type of biomarker that could be helpful for predicting who will get MS and how they will respond to treatment. Learn more about MS biomarkers. “HLA-A*03:01 as predictive genetic biomarker for glatiramer acetate treatment response in multiple sclerosis: a retrospective cohort analysis ” by Brian C. Zhang, Tilman Schneider-Hohendorf, Rebecca Elyanow, Beatrice Pignolet, Simon Falk, Christian Wünsch, Marie Deffner, Erik Yusko, Damon May, Daniel Mattox, Eva Dawin, Lisa Ann Gerdes, Florence Bucciarelli, Lisa Revie, Gisela Antony, Sven Jarius, Christiane Seidel, Makbule Senel, Stefan Bittner, Felix Luessi, Joachim Havla, Matthias Knop, Manuel A. Friese, Susanne Rothacher, Anke Salmen, Fumie Hayashi, Roland Henry, Stacy Caillier, Adam Santaniello, University of California San Francisco MS-EPIC Team, German Competence Network Multiple Sclerosis (KKNMS), Maria Seipelt, Christoph Heesen, Sandra Nischwitz, Antonios Bayas, Hayrettin Tumani, Florian Then Bergh, Gerd Meyer zu Hörste, Tania Kümpfel, Catharina C. Gross, Brigitte Wildemann, Martin Kerschensteiner, Ralf Gold, Sven G. Meuth, Frauke Zipp, Bruce A. C. Cree, Jorge Oksenberg, Michael R. Wilson, Stephen L. Hauser, Scott S. Zamvil, Luisa Klotz, Roland Liblau, Harlan Robins, Joseph J. Sabatino, Jr. Heinz Wiendl, and Nicholas Schwab. Published in eBioMedicine (2025). Learn more about how the Society aims to stop MS, restore lost function and end MS forever. Genetic variants are just one type of biomarker that could be helpful for predicting who will get MS and how they will respond to treatment. Learn more about MS biomarkers. “HLA-A*03:01 as predictive genetic biomarker for glatiramer acetate treatment response in multiple sclerosis: a retrospective cohort analysis ” by Brian C. Zhang, Tilman Schneider-Hohendorf, Rebecca Elyanow, Beatrice Pignolet, Simon Falk, Christian Wünsch, Marie Deffner, Erik Yusko, Damon May, Daniel Mattox, Eva Dawin, Lisa Ann Gerdes, Florence Bucciarelli, Lisa Revie, Gisela Antony, Sven Jarius, Christiane Seidel, Makbule Senel, Stefan Bittner, Felix Luessi, Joachim Havla, Matthias Knop, Manuel A. Friese, Susanne Rothacher, Anke Salmen, Fumie Hayashi, Roland Henry, Stacy Caillier, Adam Santaniello, University of California San Francisco MS-EPIC Team, German Competence Network Multiple Sclerosis (KKNMS), Maria Seipelt, Christoph Heesen, Sandra Nischwitz, Antonios Bayas, Hayrettin Tumani, Florian Then Bergh, Gerd Meyer zu Hörste, Tania Kümpfel, Catharina C. Gross, Brigitte Wildemann, Martin Kerschensteiner, Ralf Gold, Sven G. Meuth, Frauke Zipp, Bruce A. C. Cree, Jorge Oksenberg, Michael R. Wilson, Stephen L. Hauser, Scott S. Zamvil, Luisa Klotz, Roland Liblau, Harlan Robins, Joseph J. Sabatino, Jr. Heinz Wiendl, and Nicholas Schwab. Published in eBioMedicine (2025). " c-nmssatomrichtext_nmssatomrichtext-host="">In one of the first steps towards personalized medicine for MS, early research identified a genetic marker that predicts response to an MS treatment. This could allow people with MS to get started earlier on effective treatments. Background: A commonly used treatment for MS is glatiramer acetate (GA, also known by its brand names, Copaxone and Glatopa). GA is a long-established and safe disease modifying treatment option. Like other MS drugs, not everyone responds to it, and there is currently no way to predict who will benefit from GA treatment.The Study: Researchers looked for associations between genetic markers and GA treatment response using blood samples and clinical data from many international studies of people with MS. Blood samples from over 3,000 people with MS were studied to track how the immune system responded to GA treatment. Next, health records from nearly 2,000 people with MS were studied to determine the clinical effectiveness of treatment with GA or interferon beta (another common MS drug).Researchers focused on associations with genetic markers in the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) region, which plays a key role in immune function and has been shown to influence MS risk. Results: People with a specific variant (or version) of the HLA-A gene specifically benefited from GA treatment. GA treatment led to a strong and beneficial type of immune response, especially in individuals with the HLA-A*03:01 genetic variant. People also had fewer relapses, less disability progression, and a reduced number of lesions on brain scans (MRI) when compared to people with HLA-A*03:01 who were treated with interferon beta.Results suggest that determining if a person with MS has the HLA-A*03:01 variant prior to treatment initiation could be helpful for determining if they will respond better to GA than interferon beta. Why Does This Matter? This is the first genetic marker identified that predicts response to an MS treatment. It is one of the first steps towards personalized medicine for MS, which would allow people with MS to get started earlier on effective treatments.While it is a promising early step, the test is still in the experimental phase of development, and it is currently unknown when it might be available for clinical use. Learn More… The study was supported in part by a research grant from the National MS Society that funds promising projects aligned with the Pathways to Cures Research Roadmap. Learn more about how the Society aims to stop MS, restore lost function and end MS forever. Genetic variants are just one type of biomarker that could be helpful for predicting who will get MS and how they will respond to treatment. Learn more about MS biomarkers. “HLA-A*03:01 as predictive genetic biomarker for glatiramer acetate treatment response in multiple sclerosis: a retrospective cohort analysis ” by Brian C. Zhang, Tilman Schneider-Hohendorf, Rebecca Elyanow, Beatrice Pignolet, Simon Falk, Christian Wünsch, Marie Deffner, Erik Yusko, Damon May, Daniel Mattox, Eva Dawin, Lisa Ann Gerdes, Florence Bucciarelli, Lisa Revie, Gisela Antony, Sven Jarius, Christiane Seidel, Makbule Senel, Stefan Bittner, Felix Luessi, Joachim Havla, Matthias Knop, Manuel A. Friese, Susanne Rothacher, Anke Salmen, Fumie Hayashi, Roland Henry, Stacy Caillier, Adam Santaniello, University of California San Francisco MS-EPIC Team, German Competence Network Multiple Sclerosis (KKNMS), Maria Seipelt, Christoph Heesen, Sandra Nischwitz, Antonios Bayas, Hayrettin Tumani, Florian Then Bergh, Gerd Meyer zu Hörste, Tania Kümpfel, Catharina C. Gross, Brigitte Wildemann, Martin Kerschensteiner, Ralf Gold, Sven G. Meuth, Frauke Zipp, Bruce A. C. Cree, Jorge Oksenberg, Michael R. Wilson, Stephen L. Hauser, Scott S. Zamvil, Luisa Klotz, Roland Liblau, Harlan Robins, Joseph J. Sabatino, Jr. Heinz Wiendl, and Nicholas Schwab. Published in eBioMedicine (2025). nationalmssociety.org, Facebook , X (formerly known as Twitter), Instagram , YouTube or 1-800-344-4867 . " c-nmssatomrichtext_nmssatomrichtext-host="">About Multiple Sclerosis Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable disease of the central nervous system. Currently there is no cure. Symptoms vary from person to person and may include disabling fatigue, mobility challenges, cognitive changes, and vision issues. An estimated 1 million people live with MS in the United States. Early diagnosis and treatment are critical to minimize disability. Significant progress is being made to achieve a world free of MS. About the National Multiple Sclerosis Society The National MS Society, founded in 1946, is the global leader of a growing movement dedicated to creating a world free of MS. The Society funds cutting-edge research for a cure, drives change through advocacy and provides programs and services to help people affected by MS live their best lives. Connect to learn more and get involved: nationalmssociety.org , Facebook , X (formerly known as Twitter), Instagram , YouTube or 1-800-344-4867 . nationalmssociety.org, Facebook , X (formerly known as Twitter), Instagram , YouTube or 1-800-344-4867 . " c-nmssatomrichtext_nmssatomrichtext-host="">About Multiple Sclerosis Multiple sclerosis is an unpredictable disease of the central nervous system. Currently there is no cure. Symptoms vary from person to person and may include disabling fatigue, mobility challenges, cognitive changes, and vision issues. An estimated 1 million people live with MS in the United States. Early diagnosis and treatment are critical to minimize disability. Significant progress is being made to achieve a world free of MS. About the National Multiple Sclerosis Society The National MS Society, founded in 1946, is the global leader of a growing movement dedicated to creating a world free of MS. The Society funds cutting-edge research for a cure, drives change through advocacy and provides programs and services to help people affected by MS live their best lives. Connect to learn more and get involved: nationalmssociety.org , Facebook , X (formerly known as Twitter), Instagram , YouTube or 1-800-344-4867 .
Genetic Biomarker for GA Response