New Therapy Could Transform Arthritis Treatment

Scientists at the Medical Research Council’s Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge say new understanding about how to control autoimmune responses offers promise in efforts to develop treatments for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), British researchers say.

RA — a painful, inflammatory form of arthritis — occurs when the body’s immune system attacks itself. A molecule called Foxp3 plays an important role in immune system regulation. People who lack or have mutated versions of the Foxp3 gene lack or have dysfunctional immune system regulation.

The scientific team genetically engineered a drug-inducible form of Foxp3, which enables them to switch developing immune cells into regulatory cells capable of suppressing immune response.

The study was published in the current issue of the journal PLoS Biology.