Study of the Mechanisms of Action of Cladribine in Multiple Sclerosis (Clad'Action)

The main objective of the project is therefore to study and thus better understand the immunomodulatory / anti-inflammatory effects of cladribine during multiple sclerosis.

Most current and developing therapies targeting the immune system have no effect on the progressive phase of MS, during which neurodegeneration plays a predominant role. As mentioned above, the very promising results of clinical trials with cladribine tablets for the early and progressive phase of the disease have revealed immunomodulatory properties and suggested potential neuroprotective effects.

It therefore plans to further dissect one of these two parameters by designing in vitro studies with peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from healthy donors and MS patients.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Multiple Sclerosis
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: biological collection

Detailed Description

Recent clinical trials have reported a remarkable therapeutic efficacy of cladribine tablets not only in the early and recurrent phases of the disease, but also in progressive multiple sclerosis. However, its role on the immune and nervous systems has hardly been studied, although these studies suggest that CoA may exert anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective actions. Thus, the objective is to better understand/describe how cladribine acts during MS and to demonstrate whether CoA: (1) is able to effectively modulate pro-inflammatory immune processes and (2) has powerful neuroprotective properties. Ultimately, it will provide proof of concept that cladribine can be used not only in the early but also in the progressive phase of MS.

To address this hypothesis, the goal is to study the beneficial immunomodulatory/anti-inflammatory effects of cladribine on multiple sclerosis.

The main objective of this project is therefore to study and thus better understand the immunomodulatory / anti-inflammatory effects of cladribine during multiple sclerosis.

Most current and developing therapies targeting the immune system have no effect on the progressive phase of MS, during which neurodegeneration plays a predominant role. As mentioned above, the very promising results of clinical trials with cladribine tablets for the early and progressive phase of the disease have revealed immunomodulatory properties and suggested potential neuroprotective effects.

It therefore plans to further dissect one of these two parameters by designing in vitro studies with peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) from healthy donors and MS patients.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 77
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• France
  • Rouen, France, 760031
    • Rouen University Hospital

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Major Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Patients
• RR MS patients without treatment (early stage disease) Or RR MS patients treated with first-line compounds (IFNβ, glatiramer acetate, teriflunomide and dimethyl fumarate, ...).

Or RR MS patients treated with second-line compounds (natalizumab and fingolimod, ...) RR MS patients treated with third-line compounds (alemtuzumab, ...) Or Patients with progressive MS

• Patients who have read and understood the information letter and signed the consent form
• Person affiliated to a social security system

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients under 18 years of age or over 65 years of age,
• Patients who have benefited from immunosuppressive treatments for other autoimmune or cancerous pathologies,
• Patients receiving treatments for multiple sclerosis and participating in phase 2, 3 or 4 protocols will be excluded.
• Patients who have been treated for less than 1 year with cladribine, daclizumab, ocrelizumab, rituximab will be excluded.
• Patients who have received mitoxantrone or a stem cell transplant,
• Regulatory Criteria :
• Person deprived of liberty by an administrative or judicial decision
• Person placed under legal protection, sub-tutorship or curatorship

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Basic Science
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Intervention / Treatment

Experimental: Multiple Sclerosis Patients; Multiple Sclerosis Patients usually followed by Dr. Bourre as part of his consultation at the Rouen University Hospital will be offered the opportunity to participate in this study if they meet the selection criteria.

Other: biological collection; Six 5 mL heparinized tubes, approximately 24 mL of blood will be collected as per standard practice. The 5 tubes collected from a given individual will be transported directly to the laboratory. In the laboratory, peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) will be prepared for the various analyses. However, in order to minimize the effect of agents other than CoA in MS patients, it is necessary that peripheral blood mononuclear cells are collected before treatment is given: for RR MS patients treated with first-line drugs (IFNβ, glatiramer acetate, teriflunomide and dimethyl fumarate, ...), RR MS patients treated with second-line drugs (natalizumab and fingolimod, ...) and RR MS patients treated with third-line drugs (alemtuzumab, ...).

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Description of cladribine's effects on immune system of multiple sclerosis patients	Analysis of T cell response by flow cytometry	Through study completion, of 1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University Hospital, Rouen

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 13, 2020
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 14, 2021
• Study Completion (Actual): December 14, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: December 29, 2020
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 25, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): March 29, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): February 18, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: February 17, 2026
• Last Verified: February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Nervous System Diseases; Autoimmune Diseases; Immune System Diseases; Demyelinating Autoimmune Diseases, CNS; Autoimmune Diseases of the Nervous System; Demyelinating Diseases; Multiple Sclerosis
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2018/0408/HP

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No