Overview

• Researchers in Cambridge randomized about 70 people with relapsing MS to metformin plus clemastine or placebo for six months, assessing myelin integrity using visual evoked potentials.
• In the active group, nerve‑signal timing remained stable while it slowed in the placebo group, a modest difference consistent with a biological remyelination effect.
• Findings were presented at the ECTRIMS meeting in Barcelona, with investigators describing the outcome as proof of concept that now requires larger and longer trials.
• No serious adverse events were reported, though fatigue was common on clemastine and diarrhea on metformin, and participants did not report symptom improvement.
• The study builds on UCSF’s ReBuild trial showing a very small effect from clemastine alone, and the MS Society, which funded the work, urged against off‑label use outside clinical studies.