16th December 2025
As part of its mission to accelerate effective treatments for progressive MS, the International Progressive MS Alliance has awarded €3.5 million for two clinical trials under its Experimental Medicine Trial Awards initiative. The Experimental Medicine Trial Awards fund new and creative studies that help scientists better understand how MS works. These trials also show how treatments affect real health outcomes in a short amount of time. These new studies will test drugs previously used to treat other conditions for their potential to slow or prevent progression.
Five total projects were selected for funding from the Alliance as part of the Experimental Medicine Trial Awards. Three one-year Development Awards were announced earlier this year, and now two full clinical trials are ready to begin.
“People with progressive MS need solutions as quickly as possible. By funding projects that investigate drugs already used and proven safe for use in other diseases, we can accelerate testing and deliver answers sooner,” said Ruth Ann Marrie, Vice-Chair of the Alliance’s Scientific Steering Committee, and Professor/MS Clinical Research Chair at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia, Canada. “The Alliance is proud to facilitate these kinds of studies that we hope will find new therapies for people with progressive MS.”
In line with the Alliance’s Principles of Patient Engagement, the Experimental Medicine Trial Awards required projects to be developed with, and informed by, perspectives of people affected by progressive MS, including trial design and key outcomes.
Experimental Medicine Full Trial Award Projects:
Project 1: Testing Hydroxychloroquine to Reduce Brain Inflammation
Professor Laura Airas and her team (Turku University Hospital, Finland) will test whether hydroxychloroquine—a drug long used for malaria and autoimmune diseases—can reduce inflammation in the brain, specifically the activation of microglial cells that contribute to disease progression in multiple sclerosis. The study will use positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to measure microglial activation and incorporate advanced MRI techniques as biomarkers to help accelerate future drug development.
Project 2: GLP-1 Receptor Agonists for Neuroprotection
Dr. Ellen Mowry (Johns Hopkins University, USA) and her team will investigate whether GLP-1 receptor agonists, currently used to treat diabetes and obesity, can reduce brain inflammation and protect neurons, which they believe will reduce the risk of progression in those with MS, or slow down disease progress in those with progressive MS. The two-year trial will compare NLY01, an experimental GLP1-agonist, to a placebo, using imaging, blood biomarkers, neurological examinations, and patient-reported outcomes to assess effectiveness.
Learn more about these groundbreaking studies in the Alliance’s recent webcast, “Hidden Potential: How Existing Drugs Could Transform MS Treatment.”