University of Toledo researchers develop experimental rheumatoid arthritis vaccine
The vaccine is purely experimental, but shows promise.
TOLEDO, Ohio — Researchers at the University of Toledo have developed an experimental vaccine that shows promise in preventing rheumatoid arthritis, a painful autoimmune disease that cannot currently be cured.
The findings, detailed in a paper published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, present a breakthrough in the study of rheumatoid arthritis and autoimmune diseases in general.
Dr. Ritu Chakravarti, assistant professor at the UToledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences and lead author of the published paper that detailed the researchers’ findings, says that the vaccine could be revolutionary.
“In spite of its high prevalence, there is no cure and we don’t entirely know what brings it on. This is true of nearly all autoimmune diseases, which makes treating or preventing them so difficult,” said Dr. Ritu Chakravarti, an assistant professor in the UToledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences and the paper’s lead author. “If we can successfully get this vaccine into the clinic, it would be revolutionary.”
One of the most common autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis occurs when the body’s immune system attacks and breaks down healthy tissue — most notably the lining of joints in the hands, wrists, ankles and knees.
Some estimates suggest rheumatoid arthritis affects as much as 1% of the global population.
