Interferon / IFNβ
IFNβ works in a few different ways to help protect the brain and nervous system:
Calms Inflammation: It acts like a dimmer switch for the immune system, turning up the body’s natural anti-inflammatory defenders while turning down the signals that cause harmful inflammation.
Protects the Brain: It makes it harder for inflammatory immune cells to cross the “blood-brain barrier” (the brain’s protective shield). By keeping these cells out, it prevents them from causing damage.
Helps Repair Nerves: It boosts the production of nerve growth factors—essentially “fertilizer” for the brain—which helps damaged nerve cells survive and repair themselves.
Deploys Helpful Immune Cells: It increases the number of a specific type of natural killer cell in the blood that actually helps regulate and calm down overactive immune responses.
