Jesse2233
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Tocilizumab (Actemra and RoActemra) is an immunosuppressive drug, mainly for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
It is a humanized monoclonal antibody against the interleukin-6 receptor (IL-6R). Interleukin 6 (IL-6) is a cytokine that plays an important role in immune response and is implicated in the pathogenesis of many diseases, such as autoimmune diseases, multiple myeloma and prostate cancer.
IL-6 has been found to be elevated in severe ME/CFS (1) and excess IL-6 has been linked to mitochondrial dysfunction (2).
I've not seen any discussion here or anywhere else on using Tocilizumab as a potential treatment of ME/CFS, and don't know of anyone ever trying it. It's likely that IL-6 is not the core driver of the disease, but blocking it could perhaps improve symptoms in some.
Of course it might end up being a game of a whack a mole in terms of treating abnormal immunological findings, but it seems to be quite effective for RA patients (3).
Perhaps the idiosyncrasies of each aberrant ME/CFS immune system in a certain subset require a unique monoclonal intervention, and this could be one.
Tocilizumab is given by injection once a week, its side effect profile seems to be gentler than Rituximab
My usual proviso that I have no scientific or medical background applies
It is a humanized monoclonal antibody against the interleukin-6 receptor (IL-6R). Interleukin 6 (IL-6) is a cytokine that plays an important role in immune response and is implicated in the pathogenesis of many diseases, such as autoimmune diseases, multiple myeloma and prostate cancer.
IL-6 has been found to be elevated in severe ME/CFS (1) and excess IL-6 has been linked to mitochondrial dysfunction (2).
L-6 treatment led to decreased mitochondrial membrane potential, decreased cellular ATP production, and increased intracellular ROS levels. The mitochondria in IL-6-treated cells became swollen and hollow with reduced or missing cristae.
I've not seen any discussion here or anywhere else on using Tocilizumab as a potential treatment of ME/CFS, and don't know of anyone ever trying it. It's likely that IL-6 is not the core driver of the disease, but blocking it could perhaps improve symptoms in some.
Of course it might end up being a game of a whack a mole in terms of treating abnormal immunological findings, but it seems to be quite effective for RA patients (3).
Perhaps the idiosyncrasies of each aberrant ME/CFS immune system in a certain subset require a unique monoclonal intervention, and this could be one.
Tocilizumab is given by injection once a week, its side effect profile seems to be gentler than Rituximab
My usual proviso that I have no scientific or medical background applies