Cross Lab

Anne Cross, MD

MRI photo left to right Rob Naismith, MD, Anne Cross, MD, Victor Song, PhD, and Robyn Klein, MD Shot for Outlook Magazine
MRI photo left to right Rob Naismith, MD, Anne Cross, MD, Victor Song, PhD, and Robyn Klein, MD Shot for Outlook Magazine

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

Anne Cross, MD

Manny and Rosalyn Rosenthal – Dr. John Trotter MS Center Chair in Neuroimmunology
Professor, Neurology Division of Adult Neurology
Section Head, Neuroimmunology

Research profile
Clinical profile

Recent publications

Complete bibliography