All arthritis stories

Researchers track down rheumatoid arthritis gene

404132862 — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 10:03:31 -0500

Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard have discovered a gene involved in rheumatoid arthritis, a painful autoimmune disease that affects 2.1 million Americans and can destroy cartilage and bone within the afflicted joint.

HMS researchers find how gold fights arthritis

50443248 — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 11:26:43 -0400

Gold compounds have been used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases for more than 75 years, but, until now, how the metals work has been a mystery. Harvard Medical School (HMS) researchers report in the Feb. 27 issue of Nature Chemical Biology that special forms of gold, platinum, and other classes of medicinal metals work by stripping bacteria and virus particles from the grasp of a key immune system protein.

How gold and other medicinal metals function against rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 06:24:51 -0400

Gold compounds have been used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases for more than 75 years, but until now, how the metals work has been a mystery. Harvard Medical School researchers report in the Feb. 27, 2006 issue of Nature Chemical Biology that special forms of gold, platinum, and other classes of medicinal metals work by stripping bacteria and virus particles from the grasp of a key immune system protein. "We were searching for a new drug to treat autoimmune diseases," says Brian DeDecker, PhD, Harvard Medical School post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Cell Biology and a study co-author. At the time of this work, DeDecker was in the Harvard Medical School Institute of Chemistry and Cell Biology, which uses powerful chemical tools to illuminate complex biological processes and provide new leads for drug development. "But instead we discovered a biochemical mechanism that may help explain how an old drug works."

DeDecker and co-author Stephen De Wall, PhD, undertook a large-scale search for new drugs that would suppress the function of an important component of the immune system, MHC class II proteins, which are associated with autoimmune diseases. MHC class II proteins normally hold pieces of invading bacteria and virus on the surface of specialized antigen presentation cells. Presentation of these pieces alerts other specialized recognition cells of the immune system called lymphocytes, which starts the normal immune response. Usually this response is limited to harmful bacteria and viruses, but sometimes this process goes awry and the immune system turns towards the body itself causing autoimmune diseases such as juvenile diabetes, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis.

During their search through thousands of compounds they found that the known cancer drug Cisplatin, a drug containing the metal platinum, directly stripped foreign molecules from the MHC class II protein. From there, they found that platinum was just one member of a class of metals, including a special form of gold, that all render MHC class II proteins inactive.

In subsequent experiments in cell culture, gold compounds were shown to render the immune system antigen presenting cells inactive, further strengthening this connection. These findings now give researches a mechanism of gold drug action that can be tested and explored directly in diseased tissues.

Computer use deleted as carpal tunnel syndrome cause

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 06:24:23 -0400

The popular belief that excessive computer use causes painful carpal tunnel syndrome has been contradicted by experts at Harvard Medical School. According to them, even as much as seven hours a day of tapping on a computer keyboard won't increase your risk of this disabling disorder.

The pain, numbness, and tingling are more common in those who do assembly-line work in industries such as manufacturing, sewing, cleaning, or meatpacking. Genes account for about half the cases. Women are more likely than men to suffer the syndrome.

Additional factors involve weight, pregnancy, and some diseases. Being overweight doubles the risk, according to several medical studies.

Between 20 and 60 percent of pregnant women develop the disorder, but symptoms usually go away after the baby is delivered. Diseases such as diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and lupus, and thyroid problems, connective tissue disorders, as well as previous bone dislocation or fracture, are also linked to a higher risk of developing carpal tunnel syndrome.

It's estimated to affect between 2 and 3 percent of adults, or millions of people in the United States alone. Often the disorder is classified as a repetitive stress injury, but a Harvard health publication says that's incorrect.

For more information, inquire about the publication "Hands: Strategies for Strong, Pain-Free Hands" at http:// www.health.harvard.edu/HND.

Finding challenges predominant theory that arthritis prevents bone loss

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 05:34:05 -0400

For more than 30 years, it has been accepted in the medical community that women with arthritis are actually much less likely to experience accelerated bone loss. New findings, outlined in the December 2003 issue of the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, show a direct relationship between the diseases, potentially altering how this high-risk population is diagnosed and treated. "Traditionally, women with arthritis were not considered candidates for osteoporosis screening and prevention, but our research indicates that this is probably an outdated notion," said Julie Glowacki, researcher in Brigham and Women's Hospital's Department of Orthopedic Surgery. "Our findings may prompt physicians to consider more aggressive treatment strategies that take into account both conditions," added Thomas S. Thornhill, chairman of BWH's Department of Orthopedic Surgery. "This is especially important given the fact that women suffering from arthritis may have been excluded from osteoporosis prevention in the past because they were actually believed to be at low risk for bone loss."

Replacing joints early may be better than waiting for some osteoarthritis sufferers

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 05:28:36 -0400

In a study, scientists from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and Toronto Western Hospital followed the progress of patients who opted to have joint replacement surgery. They found that those patients who had postponed having the surgery the longest -- and therefore were experiencing the most pain and loss of joint function -- also experienced the worst results two years after joint replacement surgery. "Many patients and doctors have traditionally regarded this kind of surgery as a last-resort sort of procedure," said the study's senior author, Jeffrey Katz of BWH. "But we found that patients could have a positive impact on their quality of life by being proactive about the real benefits associated with having this surgery before their conditions completely degenerate." In the study, 222 patients were divided into two groups: those with higher joint function and less pain, and those with more pain, and less joint function. Researchers noticed very little difference between how people felt after six months, compared to how they felt after two years. However, the patients who went into surgery feeling the worst, also felt worse than the healthier group two years after having their hips or knees replaced.

Study suggests surprising cause of arthritis

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 05:24:25 -0400

Julia Ying Wang, a Harvard Medical School assistant professor of medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, was exploring whether a particular class of carbohydrates called glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) trigger an immune response in the body. GAGs are a major component of joint cartilage, joint fluid, connective tissue, and skin. In collaboration with Michael Roehrl, a research assistant in the Department of Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Wang studied the effect of GAGs on mice. They found that the animals experienced arthritic symptoms, including swelling, inflammation, and joint damage, about 30 days after injection with the carbohydrates. "This study shows that rheumatoid arthritis may result from the body's mishandling of its own carbohydrates that under normal circumstances would not be interpreted as a threat," Wang said. Wang said subsequent research would most likely focus on the development of drugs aimed at stopping the growth, expansion, or adhesion of immune cells that react to glycosaminoglycans. Wang presented the research Aug. 21, 2002, at the American Chemical Society's national meeting in Boston.