Cedars-Sinai Neuroimaging Expert Wins Young Investigator Award Skip to main content Close Select your preferred language English عربى 简体中文 繁體中文 فارسي עִברִית 日本語 한국어 Русский Español Tagalog Menu Close Call 1-800-CEDARS-1 toggle search form Close Los Angeles, 16 March 2022 08:01 AM America/Los_Angeles Cedars-Sinai Neuroimaging Expert Wins Young Investigator Award March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month. Illustration by Getty. March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month. Holiday concept. Template for background, banner, card, poster with text inscription. Vector EPS10 illustration Researcher Brian Renner MD Is Recognized for His Presentation on a Possible New Multiple Sclerosis Biomarker Brian Renner, MD, a research associate in the Neuroimaging Program in the Department of Neurology at Cedars-Sinai, was honored with the Young Investigator Award for Best Oral Presentation at the Americas Committee for Treatment and Research in Multiple Sclerosis (ACTRIMS) annual forum in February. The award is given to one research scientist, resident or fellow under age 40 presenting at each conference. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, creating lesions visible on MRI scans. Because other conditions can create similar lesions, MS is often misdiagnosed. Renner presented an abstract on a multisite study to investigate a possible new biomarker called paramagnetic rim lesions (PRL), a radiological finding that could help clinicians more accurately diagnose MS patients. “Our study found that the PRL is very good at differentiating people who have MS from people who do not have MS,” Renner said. “And its sensitivity in identifying people with MS is also quite high. More investigation is needed, but this could be a very useful biomarker.” Renner credited his mentor, Pascal Sati, PhD, director of the Neuroimaging Program and associate professor of Neurology, with supervising his research work and helping him prepare for the presentation. “I got up on stage with full confidence,” Renner said. “Afterward, people were coming up and proposing collaborations and asking for more information about our data.” This was the second ACTRIMS conference and first podium speech for Renner, who joined Cedars-Sinai in January 2020. The study is part of a series investigating novel MS biomarkers. “Dr. Renner is a true asset to our neuroimaging team and couldn’t have done a better job in conducting and presenting this research,” Sati said. “We look forward to publishing these exciting findings that will help improve diagnosis and guide development of new therapies for MS patients.” Improving patient outcomes is the motivation behind the entire Cedars-Sinai neuroimaging program, said Nancy Sicotte, MD, chair of the Department of Neurology and the Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Program, and Women’s Guild Distinguished Chair in Neurology. “We’ve made wonderful strides thanks to our neuroimaging research team,” Sicotte said. “In the future we’re very hopeful that this work will allow us to make diagnoses of serious neurological illnesses like MS very confidently, early on.” Read more on the Cedars-Sinai Blog: Faces of Cedars-Sinai: Neurologist Dr. Marwa Kaisey Related Stories RSS feed - Related Stories (opens in new window) View all headlines - Related Stories Stem Cell-Gene Therapy Shows Promise in ALS Safety Trial September 05, 2022 08:00 AM America/Los_Angeles Cedars-Sinai investigators have developed an investigational therapy using support cells and a protective protein that can be delivered past the blood-brain barrier. 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Physician-scientists hope this … Read more Show previous items Show next items Contact the Media Team Email: [email protected] Contact Cara Martinez Cara.Martinez@cshs.org Share this release Cedars-Sinai Neuroimaging Expert Wins Young Investigator Award Share on: Twitter Share on: Facebook Share on: LinkedIn Search Our Newsroom Social media Visit our Facebook page (opens in new window) Follow us on Twitter (opens in new window) Visit our Youtube profile (opens in new window) (opens in new window) Latest news 07 Oct 2022 - HealthDay: Black Women Less Likely to Get Laparoscopic Fibroid Surgeries 07 Oct 2022 - Faculty Publications: Sept. 29-Oct. 6 07 Oct 2022 - Fine-Tuning Organ-Chip Technology 06 Oct 2022 - KCRW: Want New Omicron Booster? Wait at Least 2 Months After Last Shot 05 Oct 2022 - Cedars-Sinai Schedules Free Flu Vaccine Clinics 04 Oct 2022 - Cedars-Sinai Showcases Hispanic and Latinx Art Newsroom Home