Commentary|Videos|August 31, 2023

The Road Ahead for BTK Inhibitors in Multiple Sclerosis: Amit Bar-Or, MD, FRCPC, FAAN, FANA

Author(s)Amit Bar-Or, MD, FRCPC

The Melissa and Paul Anderson President’s Distinguished Professor of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, talked about the promising potential of BTK inhibitors in treating both relapsing and progressive forms of multiple sclerosis. [WATCH TIME: 6 minutes]

WATCH TIME: 4 minutes

"If these therapies prove to strike a good balance between efficacy, including the relapsing and progressive biology, with being sufficiently safe and well tolerated, they will likely be relevant for patients across the spectrum. This spectrum would include patients from very early MS, potentially first line, all the way through to those with progressive forms of the disease."

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune central nervous system disease involving B-lymphocytes and myeloid cells such as macrophages and microglia. There is currently still a high demand for highly effective and well-tolerated treatments at all stages of MS despite the number of effective therapies already available to manage relapsing forms of the disease. In recent years, Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTKs) inhibitors have become the newest potential approach to treat MS since they target the pathogenesis of the disease and have the ability to pass through the blood-brain barrier.¹

At the 2023 Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers (CMSC) Annual Meeting, held May 31 to June 3, in Aurora, Colorado, Amit Bar-Or, MD, FRCPC, FAAN, FANA, Melissa and Paul Anderson President’s Distinguished Professor, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, presented on BTKs as a novel treatment approach for managing MS. In the symposium, he and his colleagues talked about the current knowns of BTKs so far and also what clinicians can expect for these therapies.²

At the meeting, Bar-Or sat down in an interview with NeurologyLive® to discuss how BTK inhibitors address the challenge of targeting both relapsing and progressive biology in MS. He also spoke about the role that hepatic injury plays in BTK inhibitor trials, and how is it being addressed in ongoing research. In addition, Bar-Or shared his thoughts on the potential advantages that BTK inhibitors offer over other treatment approaches in terms of long-term safety and modulation of immune cells.

Click here for more coverage of CMSC 2023.

REFERENCES
1. Shulga O, Chabanova A, Kotsiuba O. Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitors in the treatment of multiple sclerosis. Postep Psychiatr Neurol. 2023;32(1):23-30. doi:10.5114/ppn.2023.126319
2. Bar-Or A. Why Bruton Tyrosine Kinase Inhibition as a Novel Approach to MS Management? Presented at: 2023 CMSC Annual Meeting; held May 31-June 3; Aurora, CO. Can a Novel DMT Class Deliver Better Outcomes in MS? ISS5.

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