Pathophysiology of Multiple Sclerosis

The purpose of this review article is to summarize the current ideas of the scientific community about the mechanisms of development of multiple sclerosis (MS). The paper deals with the issues of etiology, pathophysiological mechanisms of the development of the disease, risk factors that can lead to the development of the disease, as well as factors that can affect the course of multiple sclerosis, such as pregnancy, which can serve as an inducer of immunological tolerance, smoking, which increases the risk of developing neutralizing antibodies against biological agents, and exposure to low temperatures, leading to a pronounced decrease in the clinical manifestations of demyelination and neurodegenerative processes in the central nervous system. The review presents studies showing that the scientific community does not have enough data to recognize MS as an autoimmune disease, studies of the contribution of antibody-producing B-cells and related pathophysiological processes to the development of demyelination foci in the CNS, works devoted to the study of the mechanisms of inflammation, neurodegeneration and demyelination. An experimental model for the study of MS is mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), which gives researchers the opportunity to study MS in more detail and develop modern methods of therapy and prevention. All this is the basis for the knowledge base of a professional clinician to work with patients and successfully treat them.