Support given by the Fund Jean and Marie Henkens-Lecloux, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation.

In multiple sclerosis (MS), the myelin sheath is broken down by the own immune system. As the disease progresses, the repair of damaged myelin is severely hampered. The failure of this remyelination process is due to the inability of precursor cells to mature into myelin-producing oligodendrocytes. Despite a clear demand for repair-enhancing therapies, currently, no treatment options are available that directly stimulate remyelination.

Our research group has previously identified ‘tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1’ (TIMP-1) as a crucial factor for the maturation of the precursor cells towards the myelin-producing oligodendrocytes. Therefore, this project aims to gain better insights into the TIMP-1-induced remyelination process and, in addition, investigate whether it can be used as a therapeutic strategy to boost remyelination in MS.