New study shows how the body suppresses inflammation in the night

UK scientists have made a discovery that helps to explain how the body is able to suppress inflammation during the night. The findings, published in the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Journal, could not only help explain why manyarthritis patients wake up stiff in the morning, but could also lead to the development of innovative new therapies. How a protein suppresses inflammation at night Researchers from the University of Manchester made this breakthrough after examining cells from the joint tissue of healthy mice and humans called fibroblast-like synoviocytes, which play a key role in causing inflammatory arthritis. It was found that a protein called cryptochrome, created by the body's biological clock, worked to actively repress inflammatory pathways within affected limbs during the night. The cells in question maintained a 24-hour rhythm, with an increased inflammatory response seen when this rhythm was disrupted by disabling the cryptochrome gene. This suggests the cryptochrome protein has significant anti-inflammatory effects. The potential for new therapies Since inflammation is the key process that causes thepain and physical degeneration associated with arthritis, the team was keen to determine whetherdrugs designed to activate the cryptochrome protein could deliver protection against inflammation. This was indeed shown to be the case, indicating that this protein could be a useful new target in the future treatment of arthritis and ot...
Source: Arthritis Research UK - Category: Rheumatology Source Type: news