Studies Launched to Evaluate Efficacy of Bee Venom in the Treatment of MS
Two nonprofit organizations, the Multiple Sclerosis Association of America and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, are funding new research into the possible use of injectable bee venom in the treatment of multiple sclerosis.
In 1995, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, issued a $30,000 pilot grant to Dr. Fred Lublin at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, now a professor of neurology at Allegheny University, for research into the biological effects of honey bee venom (HBV).
By injecting various doses of HBV into animals with experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (EAE), researchers will compare the course of their disease to that in untreated animals.
If the venom has any effect on the appearance of lesions in the nervous systems of the animals, subsequent studies will seek to determine whether the venom is acting on immune cells or nerve signals, which will indicate whether the venom acts on the underlying immune abnormalities in EAE or on the symptoms caused.
This information will facilitate future trials of HBV on the effects of multiple sclerosis in humans, says Abe Eastwood, PhD, director of the research grant program for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
"The animal model that he is using is an auto-immune disease model that is commonly used in pre-clinical testing of drugs for MS," he says.
Lublin plans to present initial findings of his study in Minneapolis at the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting in April.
A $250,000 grant last year by the Multiple Sclerosis Association to researchers at Georgetown University will eventually be used to fund the first human study of injectable bee venom to treat multiple sclerosis, says Dawn Wallerstedt, RN, clinical research coordinator and nurse practitioner at Georgetown University Medical Center.
Anecdotal reports of bee venom’s beneficial effects on symptoms of multiple sclerosis and arthritis have led many patients to seek therapy by repeatedly subjecting themselves to bee stings—reportedly as many as 25-30 stings per session-—a practice that has been common in many eastern countries for centuries, says Wallerstedt.
However, there is no way to gauge accurately the amount of venom is delivered per sting.
The Georgetown study will seek to determine dose-response relationships by administration of known quantities of HBV in calculated increasing doses.
Currently, the study is awaiting FDA approval, says Wallerstedt. The administration has had some concerns about the study design because of the potential for anaphylactic reactions to bee venom.
The researchers have made recommended changes to the design and the proposed study population and hopes to have final approval in the next month, says Wallerstedt. They will then begin the process of recruiting study participants.
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