Curing arthritis in mice
With a new therapeutic product, researchers have managed to cure arthritis in mice for the first time. The scientists are now planning to test the efficacy of the drug in humans.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a condition that causes painful inflammation of several joints in the body. The joint capsule becomes swollen, and the disease can also destroy cartilage and bone as it progresses. Rheumatoid arthritis affects 0.5% to 1% of the world’s population. Up to this point, doctors have used various drugs to slow or stop the progression of the disease. But now, ETH Zurich researchers have developed a therapy that takes the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in mice to a new level: after receiving the medication, researchers consider the animals to be fully cured.
The drug is a biotechnologically produced active substance consisting of two fused components. One component is the body’s own immune messenger interleukin 4 (IL-4); previous studies have shown that this messenger protects mice with rheumatoid arthritis against cartilage and bone damage. ETH scientists have coupled an antibody to IL-4 that, based on the key-lock principle, binds to a form of a protein that is found only in inflamed tissue in certain diseases (and in tumour tissue).
Localised drug delivery
“As a result of combination with the antibody, IL-4 reaches the site of the disease when the fusion molecule is injected into the body,” says pharmacist Teresa Hemmerle, who has just completed her dissertation in the group of Dario Neri, a professor at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences. Together with Fabia Doll, also a PhD pharmacist at ETH, she is the lead author of the study. “It allows us to concentrate the active substance at the site of the disease. The concentration in the rest of the body is minimal, which reduces side-effects,” she says.
The researchers tested the new fusion molecule, which they refer to as an ‘armed antibody’, in a CTI project together with the ETH spin-off Philochem. They used a mouse model in which the animals developed swollen, inflamed toes and paws within a few days. Among other things, the researchers studied the fusion molecule in combination with dexamethasone, a cortisone-like anti-inflammatory drug that is already used to treat rheumatoid arthritis in humans. The researchers started treating each mouse as soon as they began showing signs of the disease in the form of swollen extremities.
Clinical trials in the next year
When used separately, the new fusion molecule and dexamethasone managed only to slow the progression of the disease in the affected animals. In contrast, the typical signs of arthritis, such as swollen toes and paws, disappeared completely within a few days when both medications were administered at the same time. Concentrations of a whole range of immune messengers in blood and inflamed tissue, which are changed in rheumatoid arthritis, returned to their normal levels. “In our mouse model, this combined treatment creates a long-term cure,” says Hemmerle, who, since completing her dissertation, has been working at Philochem, where she continues the project.
Based on the promising results from the animal model, Philochem is currently preparing to test the new drug in clinical trials on people suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. According to the researchers, these tests will begin in the next year.
Literature reference
Hemmerle T, Doll F, Neri D: Antibody-based delivery of IL4 to the neovasculature cures mice with arthritis. PNAS, online publication 4 August 2014, doi: external page 10.1073/pnas.1402783111
Comments
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une bonne nouvelle.félicitation je veux bien être informé de l évolution de la phase 3.
Pls send me updates on cure for rheumatoid arthritis
Hi, I am very curious to know the progress of the Curing arthritis in mice study. By reading the above article dated 06.08.2014, I understood that there were going to be clinical trials for curing the rheumatoid arthritis in humans in the year 2015. However, I am not able to find any information regarding the clinical trials throughout the year 2015. My wife suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and I am hoping that there will be a cure one day, and she will be able to lead a healthy and pain free life. I just want to say thanks to everyone working in a direction to finding a cure for this non curable disease and can't wait for the cure to be discovered.
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Glad to know that a succesful drug is coming in future to treat RA. Wish you all the best! I am eagerly waiting
My mother has been suffering from RA for the last 38 years and is in a terrible state. She can barely walk and each day is a blessing. Please please clinical trials make sure you work and well done to the ressearchers for this amazing result. I and the rest of the 5% of the world await to hear the good news !!! Oh and please make it affordable for all ;-)
This sounds absolutely fascinating but will reserve judgement until more studies are shown. As one who has had rheumatoid arthritis for 35 yrs, and three joint replacements I am skeptical of it being a cure and one thing that really bothers me is the cortisone like component. I've been on actual cortisone which ravaged my body. Trying to be hopeful and the first to try it out if more insight is provided.
This is the first time I have heard the word "cure" when referring to RA. What a wonderful thing it would be if this product cured RA in humans. Thank you to these researchers no matter what the outcome.
I am fairly new to being an RA sufferer but what marvellous news. I am sure that this news would not have been released if there wasn't some hope for us. I, personally, would be more than happy to go on the trials and be a human guinea pig
Amazing news that makes me tearful with happiness! A huge worry I'm sure for all of us who have RA is if our children get it, this is a huge relief that a cure may be possible. Words cannot express how thankful I am!
I am 24 and I've been suffering from RA from the age of 12. All my joints are affected, but at the moment I am fully functional because I've been following a biological treatment for 7 years and a half. Without this treatment I cannot even walk. I accepted my condition and I've developed an idea about my future accordingly. This article gave me hope and it changed my life perspective radically. Congratulations for this amazing discovery! Please keep us posted!
I honestly did not believe this could happen in my lifetime! This gives me hope, hope that I can work again, be active again, maybe even start a new relationship again. I will wait and pray for this amazing new advancement.
I am so excited to hear this news. Do you think it will be available to the general public with in a year or two-?
I have been struggling with RA for many years now. I have just had my first hip replacement and I have RA throughout my body. I'd love more information. My days are filled with pain and meds are not helping.
I have this disease for 23 years. Thank you for all your work. I speak for all the adults and children that are affected by this awful disease.
Such a nasty disease ! Thank you researchers !
Such wonderful news about RA. I am currently on monthly infusions of Actemra and for three months I have had no inflammation no pain. I was diagnosed 2 years ago with severe RA, started on methotrexate' then Enbrel injections for 10 months and then one Humira injection, when WBC went down to 1.0' all meds stopped, bone marrow biopsy at Darthmouth Hitchcock medical Center in Hanover. NH, diagnosis was toxicity to the drugs, was put on Otrexup and then Actemra recommended by my rheumatologist. I am interested in your clinical trials for the new therapy. I am a retired school teacher, hiking mountains when I can and if I met your requirements, would be interested in the clinical trials. My RA (condition) not disease is something that I research regularly. The word disease has such heavier connotations than the word condition in my opinion. If nothing else I would appreciate any updates you might provide. Thank you and continued great work.
This is a great news and your research in this field! You gave us hope! My only concern whether this medication will be applicable to spondyloarthritis?
Félicitations pour voss résultats sur la polyarthrite. Je suis intéressé par la suite que vous pourrez donner à ces travaux.
I hope that the human clinical trail it will not take a long time because we are suffering from RA.
It is amazing! But will this drug be possible to use in patients suffering from seronegative ankylosing spondylitis? I and my daughter seem to have developed this recently. After an infection in our intenstine or colon that set in 2 years ago and went on for 1.5 years.
This is very important news for arthritis patients. Really a great achievement!
I hd ra for over 30 yrs. over 11 surgery. I live with pain everyday. This does gv me hope. :)
Great news! Great Job! Congrats to all contributors! I hope the trials on human will come out successful and finally there'll be a cure to this ugly condition.
Is this good news for those with osteoarthritis and Scheuermann's disease.
I hope they find something soon I've tried lots of different stuff but nothing helps, so I just live day to day with pain in my right knee
I've had RA for four years now, you never give up, hope is always there, love this article.
I have had RA for 26 years. I have had many surgeries because of the damage to joints. I am down to the last biologic drug now. I Pray you do have a cure and hopefully it won't cost an arm and a leg to get it. I am very interested in your findings. It could mean a new lease on life for a lot of people!
This is very exciting news but I question the phrase 'long-term cure'. Does this treatment, in effect, reset the immune system to not attack the joints? Is the cure based on continued treatment with this new drug? I have RA in most of my joints and was told it was unlikely that it would go into remission. However, it was tragic to me to learn that young children can have this disease. This drug would be amazing if it could actually cure them.
Is this only for RA? Are there possibilities for psoriatic arthritis as well?
I hope it will work, for all of us in the world who suffer from Rhuematoid Arthritis.
It's a very great achievement and you all gave us new hope for life. I wish you all the best for human clinical trails.
Hello, I was is a great help to the people who are facing this disease. I want to know more about this cure. As my DAD is suffering from Rheumatoid arthritis. Please assist or provide us the cure treatment at the earliest.
Si vous cherchez des sujets atteints également de spondylarthrite ankylosante, je suis partante!
I've been tracking news on arthritis for a while but never really found any about CURING the disease. This is undoubtedly a big thing. Since there are so many people that are not satisfied with their current treatment there's an unmet need for new arthritis drugs. I hope the human trials will be successful and please keep us informed about the progress.
My only child who is now a 28 years old young man has rheumatoid arthritis in both his elbows. Seeing him suffer has been a major cause of concern for us as a family. On having read the above article has given us a new hope and wish you the best of luck for the human clinical trails. Request you to keep me posted on the developments.