About this Video

• Video Title: A breath-based breakthrough in MS research | Valerie Verge | TEDxUniversityofSaskatchewan
• Channel: TEDx Talks
• Speakers: Valerie Verge
• Duration: 00:14:29

Introduction

This TEDx Talk by Valerie Verge details her research on using acute intermittent hypoxia (AIH), a breath-based therapy, to treat multiple sclerosis (MS) and peripheral nerve injuries. The talk focuses on how AIH, by inducing a beneficial stress response, stimulates nerve cell firing and accelerates nerve repair, potentially offering a non-invasive treatment option for these conditions.

Key Takeaways

• AIH as a non-invasive treatment: Verge's research highlights acute intermittent hypoxia (AIH), a non-invasive breath-based therapy, as a potential treatment for MS and nerve injuries.
• Mechanism of action: AIH mimics the beneficial stress response of exercise, causing nerve cells to fire and activate repair programs, leading to accelerated nerve regeneration and remyelination.
• Comparison to electrical stimulation: AIH's effectiveness in promoting nerve repair is comparable to electrical nerve stimulation, but offers a non-invasive advantage.
• Promising results in MS-like disease in mice: AIH treatment significantly reduced inflammation and improved several key indicators of repair in mice with a progressive MS-like disease.
• Future clinical trials: Further clinical trials are planned to explore AIH's potential to treat peripheral nerve injuries and MS in humans.

The provided transcript doesn't detail the exact AIH treatment protocol used in the mouse studies, only that it involved "once-daily AIH treatment for a week," starting when the mice had severe inflammation and myelin loss. More specific details, such as the duration of each cycle of normal and low-oxygen air, and the total number of cycles per treatment, are not included in the transcript.