Dear Colleagues,

we would like to invite you to upcoming Brain Imaging Meeting organized by Laboratory of Brain Imaging (LOBI) and Laboratory of Language Neurobiology (LLN). The seminar will take place on Wednesday Feb. 10, 2021 at 2.30 PM, via google meet platform under the link: https://meet.google.com/jgm-qefb-mre

During the meeting Maciej Juryńczyk, MD, PhD - LOBI will present a talk entitled: Increasing role of imaging in discriminating multiple sclerosis from its mimics and classifying indeterminate cases

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease of the CNS driven by an immune attack of lymphocytes against myelin sheaths. For many years MS was the primary diagnosis considered in all patients presenting with relapses of CNS inflammation. Following the recent discovery of new biomarkers the concept of MS has however changed with conditions previously considered as its variants now recognised as separate entities, including neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) associated with antibodies against the water channel aquaporin-4 and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disease (MOGAD). Importantly, patients with newly recognised antibody-mediated conditions often do not respond and might even exacerbate following treatment with currently used MS-modifying drugs, which might lead to their increasing disability. The choice of appropriate treatment is particularly challenging in patients with overlapping symptoms of MS and antibody-mediated conditions who do not have the presence of antibodies in the serum. Due to lack of biomarkers in these patients the diagnosis relies mainly on brain and spinal cord imaging. In this presentation I will review my previous work on characterising distinct clinical, imaging and metabolomic features of MS, NMOSD and MOGAD, and discuss how further progress in imaging could help optimise diagnosis in indeterminate cases to prevent disability from inappropriate treatment.

Dr Maciej Jurynczyk has obtained funding from the Polish Returns programme of the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchange to create a research group in the Laboratory of Brain Imaging at the Nencki Institute.

His research project will aim at developing novel methods of magnetic resonance imaging to improve the diagnosis in patients with atypical forms of CNS demyelination. These patients are often challenging to diagnose while optimal diagnosis is essential as it allows to choose appropriate treatment and prevent long-term disability.  Dr Jurynczyk will be able to use his several year research experience obtained in Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Oxford where he was involved in a number of pioneer studies aimed at optimising methods of differential diagnosis between multiple sclerosis, neuromyelitis optica and MOG-antibody associated disease.

http://en.nencki.gov.pl/polish-returns-programme-at-the-nencki-institute-1

See you there!
Brain Imaging Meeting Team
https://lobi.nencki.gov.pl/meetings/