Watch out Arthritis: A New Enemy in Sight

New esearch has uncovered a promising new drug to fight rheumatoid arthritis. The best part? It doesn't suppress the immune system.

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, have just completed phase II trials of a new drug called dnaJP1. The drug is a peptide that comes from the naturally occurring protein, dnaJ. The protein generates inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis by impairing inflammatory-control mechanisms and causing the body's T cells to attack its own tissues.

Now, researchers hope to put a stop to that process. DnaJP1 resets the body's immune system to tolerate dnaJ. By doing so, the drug transforms a damaging trigger into a new tool for controlling the disease. Taking the drug in pill form is vital because the mucosal immune system found in the gut can teach the body to see a protein as harmless. Researchers say just like food is ingested into the body and not rejected; the body does the same thing with dnaJP1.

Salvatore Albani, M.D., Ph.D, from UCSD, says, "In essence, we re-educated the immune system T-cells to be tolerant of the dnaJP1 amino acid sequence, which would usually contribute to inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis patients." He says one of the biggest benefits is that the drug does not suppress the immune system like many drugs currently used to fight the disease. He continues: "Our drug leaves the patient's natural immune responses intact. This differs profoundly from what is currently available to patients."

In the current study, dnaJP1 was found to be safe and effective in 160 patients enrolled in the trial at centers across the country. Those centers included UCSD, Stanford University, Johns Hopkins University, the Mayo Clinic, and Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle.

Patients receiving the drug for six months had a reduction in symptoms such as swollen joints, tenderness, pain and decreased mobility when compared to those who received a placebo. Dr. Albani says, "The first two trials of dnaJP1 have not raised any significant safety concerns and offer an improved treatment option for patients with rheumatoid arthritis."