New Anti-Inflammatory Agents Silence Overactive Immune Response

[Sushi]

By Duke Medicine News and Communications

"A new way to fight inflammation uses molecules called polymers to mop up the debris of damaged cells before the immune system becomes abnormally active, researchers at Duke University Medical Center report.
The discovery, published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, offers a promising new approach to treat inflammatory autoimmune disorders such as lupus and multiple sclerosis, which are marked by an overactive immune response...."

http://www.dukehealth.org/health_li...response?elq=91c12e4ea45047bf9c1c629625aa5a81

 

[Carrigon]

I think this type of drug would help me alot. Alot of my problems are from inflammation. I think that's why I had some response to longer treatment with Xithromax. They said it can reduce inflammation. Maybe this type of treatment will be something good for us.

 

[Tristen]

Aside from finding an actual single cause and effective treatment, I think it will be the right anti-inflammatory that provides the most effective symptom relief.

 

[Sushi]

From Pub Med:

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 Aug 15. [Epub ahead of print]
Nucleic acid-binding polymers as anti-inflammatory agents.

Lee J, Sohn JW, Zhang Y, Leong KW, Pisetsky D, Sullenger BA.
Source

Duke Translational Research Institute, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710.

Abstract

Dead and dying cells release nucleic acids. These extracellular RNAs and DNAs can be taken up by inflammatory cells and activate multiple nucleic acid-sensing toll-like receptors (TLR3, 7, 8, and 9). The inappropriate activation of these TLRs can engender a variety of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. The redundancy of the TLR family encouraged us to seek materials that can neutralize the proinflammatory effects of any nucleic acid regardless of its sequence, structure or chemistry. Herein we demonstrate that certain nucleic acid-binding polymers can inhibit activation of all nucleic acid-sensing TLRs irrespective of whether they recognize ssRNA, dsRNA or hypomethylated DNA. Furthermore, systemic administration of such polymers can prevent fatal liver injury engendered by proinflammatory nucleic acids in an acute toxic shock model in mice. Therefore these polymers represent a novel class of anti-inflammatory agent that can act as molecular scavengers to neutralize the proinflammatory effects of various nucleic acids.

PMID: 21844380 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

 

[Graham]

That's interesting. I take steroids to dampen down inflammation caused by polymyalgic rheumatica, and find that it helps my ME as well. I'd love this to be a useful drug in easing the effects of ME.

 

[SpecialK82]

Great find