Jan 27, 2026
3 min read
A network of researchers coordinated by Vita-Salute San Rafael University has identified a molecule - Bavicent - that has been shown for the first time to protect neurons and promote myelin repair in experimental models.The results are published in Science Translational Medicine.Mario Alberto Battaglia: "Investing in strategic research, considering people's needs is the way to success"
Photo: Professor Paula Panina, Professor of Experimental Cell Biology at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, and Professor Gianvito Martino, Scientific Director of IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital, Vice-Director of Research, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University.
One in a thousand does, I must say.
Research published today in Science Translational Medicine has identified a molecule that has been shown for the first time to protect neurons and repair myelin in experimental models of multiple sclerosis.The molecule is called bavisant and has been identified as a candidate for the future treatment of multiple sclerosis among a list of more than 1,500 drugs.
This is an important milestone, the result of a journey that began a long time ago.The discovery actually comes from the BRAVEinMS consortium, formed in 2017 with the support of the International Progressive MS Alliance – founding member, board member and funder of its Foundation (FISM).
Published research has been carried out by many world-renowned institutions such as the University of California San Francisco, University of Münster, Paris Brain Institute, Mc Gill University of Montreal, University of Mainz, Istituto Superiore di Sanità of Rome, University of Milan - Department of Pharmacology and Molecular Biology, National Research Council of Monserrato.Pomezia, Rome.
How the study was conducted
BRAVEinMS was born to answer a main question: is it possible to reuse drugs already approved for other therapeutic indications against multiple sclerosis?
Thanks to an innovative screening model and artificial intelligence - after a series of analyses, first at computer level and then in the laboratory - from the initial 1,500 molecules, 273 were chosen, then 32 and finally 6, finally focusing on Pavisand.This drug is a histamine H3 receptor antagonist, which is already used for sleep and wakefulness disorders.
Since the drug is already known and used, the use of bavisant led to a faster time, lower cost and greater safety compared to the development of a new molecule, the researchers say.
In clinical trials of multiple sclerosis, bavisant has been shown to stimulate cells that produce myelin to repair nerve fibers and protect neurons from damage.The molecule works on two different types of brain cells: neurons and cells that produce myelin, which allows nerve regeneration and prevents damage.
Thanks to the AI used in the initial experiments - explains Dr. Svetlana Bezukladova, IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, first name of the publication - we identified several hundred molecules, among the thousands of compounds analyzed, which were then investigated using very sophisticated tests in vitro and in vivo.Specific in vitro and in vivo models were used in the screening process and thus we demonstrated that Bavisant improves remyelination and neuroprotection.But not only that, because we have shown, above all, that this effect is reproducible in vitro, in organoids derived from healthy controls and people with multiple sclerosis, and in vivo, in several animal models of the disease, including a chimeric mouse model in which the myelin is of human origin."
"We have shown for the first time that it is possible to identify, with systemic methods based on human models in vitro and in vivo, molecules capable of regenerating myelin and at the same time protecting neurodegenerative cells," he said."But to create a new way of pharmacological research: faster, more predictable and closer to the expectations of people with multiple sclerosis."
Prof. who adds: "Today this indicator has produced not only a real agent that only misses the last mile at the patient's bedside, but also 30 other possible new molecules that can be used in advanced multiple sclerosis. In addition, we have built and strengthened a research platform, it is effective, efficient, and can validate and evaluate the translational potential of the neuroprotective platform can be a research toolneuroprotective potential."
Again, the commitment of the Organization to the Foundation and the vision of the research direction has borne fruit, as Professor Martino himself explained: "The effectiveness of the modern research system that we have been able to implement is mainly due to the possibility of using in vitro and in vivo models based on neural stem cells that we know since 2000 of the foundation. Neural stem cells have allowed us to achieve in vitro and in vivo systems close to reality, that is, what can actually happen in the systemthe emotions of a person with multiple sclerosis."
"The results of BRAVEinMS confirm that investing in strategic joint research aimed at the needs of patients with advanced MS is the way to success. As the Italian Multiple Sclerosis Foundation, together with the other organizations of the International Advanced MS Alliance, we have decided to support this research model because it is able to turn scientific collaboration into concrete opportunities for new treatments that are even less well-led. Professor Mario Alberto Battaglia, InternationalChairman of the Multiple Sclerosis Federation FISM and the International Multiple Sclerosis Federation.
BRAVEinMS work will now continue with the goal of assessing and exploring the feasibility of human efficacy studies.With this in mind, the International Progressive MS Alliance recently announced €700,000 in additional funding for the initiative.
