Unraveling the EBV-MS Connection: Professor Øivind Torkildsen at MENACTRIMS 2025
We’re delighted to share that Professor Øivind Torkildsen from the University of Bergen and Haukeland University Hospital has been invited as a faculty speaker at the Tenth MENACTRIMS Congress, hosted by the Middle East North Africa Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (MENACTRIMS). The congress will take place on 5 and 6 December 2025 at the Intercontinental Dubai Festival City, with pre-congress events on 4 December 2025. MENACTRIMS is the leading regional platform for MS clinicians and researchers, bringing together hundreds of experts from across the Middle East, North Africa, and beyond.
By: Patricia Moghames, EMSP
Published: (Updated: )
Professor Torkildsen will present new insights into the role of Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) in multiple sclerosis (MS), drawing on results and ongoing analyses from the EBV-MS consortium, an international collaborative effort coordinated from the University of Bergen. The EBV-MS project investigates how EBV infection may trigger and sustain the autoimmune processes that lead to MS, using data from large prospective cohorts, immunological profiling, and clinical trials.
“The link between EBV and MS has moved from hypothesis to established fact in recent years,” says Professor Torkildsen. “The next challenge is to understand how EBV causes MS and how we can translate this knowledge into prevention and treatment.”
His lecture, scheduled for Saturday, 6 December at 11:00, will highlight the consortium’s latest discoveries on EBV reactivation, host immune responses, and therapeutic strategies targeting the virus.
Participation at MENACTRIMS 2025 reflects the growing global interest in the EBV-MS project and underscores the consortium’s leading role in this rapidly evolving field of MS research.
Explore the congress details and full programme here (external link) and register (external link)to join the discussions at MENACTRIMS 2025!
Communicating about projects like EBV-MS on a global stage is essential to foster scientific exchange, strengthen international collaborations, and accelerate progress towards better prevention and treatment of multiple sclerosis.