Cross Lab
Anne Cross, MD

The goal of the Cross lab’s research is to understand the mechanisms involved in pathogenesis of inflammation and demyelination in the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). Our research is primarily focused on the human disease multiple sclerosis (MS), which is very common (1/1000 in the U.S. population). We study human tissues (blood, DNA, RNA, spinal fluid) and perform cutting-edge imaging of the human nervous system. We sometimes employ an animal model for MS known as experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). We are currently performing longitudinal imaging studies to help devise methods to differentiate the various types of pathologies in the human disease, such as demyelination, inflammation with cells and or edema due to blood-brain barrier breakdown and axon damage and loss. We are funded to devise better methods to measure progression of MS over time, which might be used in clinical trials. We also study the effects of diet and calorie restriction upon neuro-inflammation, having shown previously that calorie restriction ameliorates EAE, the prime animal model for MS, at least partly through the upregulation of adiponectin and downregulation of leptin.
Principal investigator

Anne Cross, MD
Manny and Rosalyn Rosenthal – Dr. John Trotter MS Center Chair in Neuroimmunology
Professor, Neurology Division of Adult Neurology
Head, Section of Neuroimmunology
- Phone: 314-362-3293
Recent publications
- Quantitative MRI identifies lesional and non-lesional abnormalities in MOGADBrier, M. R., Xiang, B., Ciotti, J. R., Chahin, S., Wu, G. F., Naismith, R. T., Yablonskiy, D. & Cross, A. H., May 2023, In: Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders. 73, 104659.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Differential effects of anti-CD20 therapy on CD4 and CD8 T cells and implication of CD20-expressing CD8 T cells in MS disease activityShinoda, K., Li, R., Rezk, A., Mexhitaj, I., Patterson, K. R., Kakara, M., Zuroff, L., Bennett, J. L., von Büdingen, H. C., Carruthers, R., Edwards, K. R., Fallis, R., Giacomini, P. S., Greenberg, B. M., Hafler, D. A., Ionete, C., Kaunzner, U. W., Lock, C. B., Longbrake, E. E., Pardo, G., & 13 othersPiehl, F., Weber, M. S., Ziemssen, T., Jacobs, D., Gelfand, J. M., Cross, A. H., Cameron, B., Musch, B., Winger, R. C., Jia, X., Harp, C. […]
- The CELLO trial: Protocol of a planned phase 4 study to assess the efficacy of Ocrelizumab in patients with radiologically isolated syndromeLongbrake, E. E., Hua, L. H., Mowry, E. M., Gauthier, S. A., Alvarez, E., Cross, A. H., Pei, J., Priest, J., Raposo, C., Hafler, D. A. & Winger, R. C., Dec 2022, In: Multiple Sclerosis and Related Disorders. 68, 104143.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- MINI-review of Epstein-Barr virus involvement in multiple sclerosis etiology and pathogenesisAloisi, F. & Cross, A. H., Oct 15 2022, In: Journal of Neuroimmunology. 371, 577935.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review
- Evaluating brain damage in multiple sclerosis with simultaneous multi-angular-relaxometry of tissueXiang, B., Wen, J., Schmidt, R. E., Sukstanskii, A. L., Mamah, D., Yablonskiy, D. A. & Cross, A. H., Oct 2022, In: Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology. 9, 10, p. 1514-1527 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review