Mouse Study Shows Possible Benefits of Targeting Immune Messenger IL-17A in MS
February 7, 2020
The immune messenger protein IL-17A has long been known to be a major player in the immune attacks that underlie MS. Researchers at Trinity College Dublin are now reporting that – in studies in mice with MS-like disease -- IL-17A appears to act by priming other immune system components, and not by triggering inflammation itself. Eliminating IL-17A from mice or treating them with inhibitors of IL-17A enabled the mice to resist getting MS-like disease. Antibodies targeting this immune protein are in development, and one has been approved to treat another immune-mediated disease – plaque psoriasis. These studies can serve to inform similar future efforts in MS.
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Read a summary of the paper in Immunity