New 'suicide' molecule halts rheumatoid arthritis | Arthritis Information
New 'suicide' molecule halts rheumatoid arthritis
A researcher from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine has invented a novel way to halt and even reverse rheumatoid arthritis. He developed an imitation of a suicide molecule that floats undetected into overactive immune cells responsible for the disease. Whimsically referred to as Casper the Ghost, the stealthy molecule causes the immune cells to self-destruct.
The approach, tested on mice, doesn't carry the health risks of current treatments.
"This new therapy stopped the disease cold in 75 percent of the mice," reported Harris Perlman, the lead author and an associate professor of medicine at Feinberg. "The best part was we didn't see any toxicity. This has a lot of potential for creating an entirely new treatment for rheumatoid arthritis."
The study will be published in the February issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism.
Healthy immune cells are supposed to die after they attack an invading virus or bacteria. But in rheumatoid arthritis, the immune cells called macrophages live and go rogue. They proliferate in the blood, build up in the joints and invade cartilage and bone. Currently, there is no effective, nontoxic way to stop them.
Perlman discovered that immune cells in rheumatoid arthritis are low in a critical molecule called Bim, whose job is to order the cells to self-destruct. To correct that shortage, Perlman developed an imitation of the molecule, called BH3 mimetic. When Harris injected his drug into mice with rheumatoid arthritis, it floated ghostlike into their macrophages and bam!, the misbehaving immune cells self destructed.
In his research, Harris showed the molecule could prevent the development of rheumatoid arthritis as well as trigger a remission of existing disease. After the drug was injected in animals with the disease, joint swelling was reduced and bone destruction decreased.
Current treatments for rheumatoid arthritis include low-level chemotherapy and steroids. These are not always effective, however, and they are frequently accompanied by side effects. A newer class of therapy, which is sometimes used in combination with chemotherapy and steroids, is biologic response modifiers. These are antibodies or other proteins that reduce the inflammation produced by the hyperactive immune cells. These biologics don't work for everyone, though, and can be associated with side effects including the risk of infection.
Perlman said the next step is to develop nanotechnology for a more precise method of delivering the drug. His research was supported by the National Institute of Arthritis, Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease.
This is the most exciting thing I have ever heard concerning this disease!!! WOW WOW!!!
Just imagine, one shot and as they said... "BAM"! Remission!
Thanks Lev, you just filled my day with hope!
interesting...can't wait to see the follow up studiesSame thing that i said Waddie. And yes Buckeye, it will be interesting to watch the studies unfold. Like i've said for a few years now. I do believe that our cure is just around the corner. This is the beginning of a new age of medicines and cures.
LEV
This is FANTABULOUS news.
Think visions of Casper floating through your body....zapping those bad cells.
Incredible news, this is the most hopeful scientific news that I've read in a long time. L
LinB2010-01-28 19:50:36Most wonderful! Thank you Lev for keeping us all informed on the wonders of new medicine.Imagine if this works. No more toxic drugsThis is the most uplifting and promising science article I have read! Casper the Friendly Ghost - I will anxiously be awaiting further details.this is so incredible!!
PLEASE let's keep up on this!!
Double yay!! Lev, you made my Friday just a little bit better![QUOTE=babs10]this is so incredible!!
PLEASE let's keep up on this!!
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I signed up for Google alerts on the phrase "suicide molecule study for RA" and got a bunch of links already. I see my RD mid-February and will be asking if he read about Casper in the Feb. issue of
Arthritis & Rheumatism which he probably has in his bathroom already. This is the best birthday present EVER!! I hope the human trials go well. Bring on Caspar!Sounds like a miracle to me!
I hope it doesn't take a long time to get it all figured out and to us!
I am thrilled but just wondering if Casper would have an effect on Sjorgren's also? Well maybe this will lead to other ghost similar to Casper.Just wanted to keep this one up near the top. It always helps to have something to look forward to.Replying to topic so I can keep up with and refer back to this exciting find. Even if (I'm new) my month-long experience with migratory polyarthritis after a severe overnight onset ends up resolving itself (fingers as crossed...it's a good day for them), I will FOREVER now follow and support the cause of arthritis, especially chronic forms like RA.[QUOTE=Green~Tara][QUOTE=babs10]this is so incredible!!
PLEASE let's keep up on this!!
[/QUOTE]
I signed up for Google alerts on the phrase "suicide molecule study for RA" and got a bunch of links already. I see my RD mid-February and will be asking if he read about Casper in the Feb. issue of
Arthritis & Rheumatism which he probably has in his bathroom already. [/QUOTE]
Thanks for that idea, Tara!! I did the same!
I love this description in an article:
There is a tiny town called Incydau where the inhabitants don’t die. Nobody knows why or when it started or if it will ever end. Each new generation moved in with the one before it.
When the dwellings got to be too crowded, they built new dwellings around them. When they ran out of space to build, they added floors to the existing structures so more Incydians could live upstairs. The cycle repeated itself, over and over again. Food ran short, disease ran rampant and foundations wasted away. Still, no inhabitants died.
The next step for Perlman and his team is to create a better delivery system, so that it is more targeted and lives longer in the body. He estimates that it will be five to ten years before a viable drug would be available if the therapy lives up to its promise.
[QUOTE=babs10]
... The next step for Perlman and his team is to create a better delivery system, so that it is more targeted and lives longer in the body. He estimates that it will be five to ten years before a viable drug would be available if the therapy lives up to its promise.
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i know, .. but at least it's not NEVER!! Think positive!!
and the better the trials go.. the sooner!!
And Tara, I've been diagnosed now for 4 years wich seems like almost yesteryear. Also there may be other medicines prior to the "BAM" medicine. They're coming. All we have to do is make sure we're still here when they get here.
LEV
exactly lev~!! exactly.
this is the beginning of the destruction.......
and great things for us!!
I just wanted to bring this back to the top to maybe give some more hope to maybe some that hadn't heard about this and to also post a link to a video with Harris Perlman.
LEV
levlarry2011-01-07 13:04:54Fantastic News!!! I can't wait to hear more as research progresses.This info is a year old. I wonder when it will be available and if it has been tried on humans yet.
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