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Multiple sclerosis, a chronic disease of the central nervous system, could be caused by infection from the Epstein-Barr virus, a common herpes virus, according to a new study. The research, published in the journal Science on Thursday, was led by a team from Harvard University’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The researchers studied more than 10 million young adults on active duty in the military and identified 955  who were diagnosed with MS during their service. The team analyzed samples taken from the military members every other year, examining whether they had the Epstein-Barr virus and the relationship between an infection and onset of MS. (Pitofsky, 1/13)

For decades, researchers have suspected that people infected with an exceedingly common virus, Epstein-Barr, might be more likely to develop multiple sclerosis, a neurological illness that affects a million people in the United States. Now, a team of researchers reports what some say is the most compelling evidence yet of a strong link between the two diseases. (Kolata, 1/13)

If you were to ask any of the 1 million Americans living with multiple sclerosis, they’d probably say their disease started with changes so small they almost didn’t notice them: a wobbly step, a weakening grip, sight going soft around the edges. But MRI scans of their brains — dotted with ghostly white scars — would tell a different story. Those scars are signs of inflammation dating back multiple years. Each spot represents a dead zone filled with mangled remains of thousands, sometimes millions, of neurons. Like city blocks going dark during a power outage, these cells blinked out one by one after an immune storm stripped off the insulating myelin sheath that helps them send and receive electrical signals. But what triggers the immune system to turn on itself is still a mystery. (Molteni, 1/13)

Researchers at UCLA have inched closer to finding a cure for human immunodeficiency virus by targeting infected cells that could be lying dormant in the body. In a study published in the journal Nature Communications this week, researchers improved upon a method originally developed in 2017 to kill hidden HIV-infected cells using cells that are naturally produced by the body’s immune system. The advance brings scientists one step closer to control or even eradicate the virus, which attacks the body’s immune system. (Migdon, 1/13)