biotech

Engineered Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist For Osteoarthritis

Filed in archive Drugs, Vaccines and Therapeutics , Genomics, Proteomics and Bioinformatics on October 16, 2006

Engineered Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist For Osteoarthritis
Interleukin-1 receptor antagonists is a class of drugs commonly used to treat autoimmune diseases. It has limited application in treating osteoarthritis, the most common form of arthritis, however, as it rapidly breaks down before reaching the joint space. Scientists have therefore attempted to modify by attaching a second protein called called elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) that clump together at normal body temperatures.

By experimenting with composition, molecular weight and concentration of various ELPs, researchers have come up with a modified Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist which, when tested on rats, has a 25-fold longer half-life in the joint than a similar soluble protein.

The results even suggest that the fusion protein might do better in an arthritic joint as the same inflammatory enzymes that destroy joint Collagen also remove ELP from the original drug protein, thereby restoring its activity.
"With this advance, we believe treatments could go from twice a week to perhaps twice a month, and that would be a huge clinical gain."

Read the full feature report from EurekAlert.


Permalink: Engineered Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist For Osteoarthritis

Tags: arthritis  autoimmune+disease  osteoarthritis  proteomics  biotech  interleukin+receptor  receptor+antagon 

Vote for Engineered Interleukin-1 Receptor Antagonist For Osteoarthritis:

  • Currently 9.00/10
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • 6
  • 7
  • 8
  • 9
  • 10
Rating: 9.00 out of 1 vote(s) cast.
 
Share It
RSSrss
Google google
Yahoo! yahoo
Addthis Subscribe using any feed reader!
Bloglines Bloglines
Most Popular   Best of   Biotech Hubs and Facilities   Biotech/Science Blogs   Corporate and Industrial News   Diagnostics, Methodologies and Instrumentation   Did you know   Drugs, Vaccines and Therapeutics   Energy, Environment and Ecology   Food and Agriculture   Gene Therapy   Genomics, Proteomics and Bioinformatics   Information About   Meetings and Other Events   Microbiology   Misc   Nanomedicine   Other Biotechnology News   Patents and Intellectual Property Rights   Quick introduction   Stem Cells