Neutralizing IL-22 Prevents Psoriasis In Mice

Main Category: Eczema / Psoriasis
Also Included In: Biology / Biochemistry;  Genetics
Article Date: 20 Jan 2008 - 7:00 PDT

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Psoriasis, which is a chronic disease characterized by the development of red, scaly, raised skin lesions, affects approximately 2% of the population of countries of the Western world. A new study by Lynette Fouser and colleagues at Wyeth Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts, has provided evidence that the soluble molecule IL-22 is central to the development of disease in a mouse model of psoriasis. Antibodies that neutralized IL-22 were found to prevent the development of psoriasis-like disease, reducing thickening of the skin, inflammatory infiltrates, and expression of Th17 cytokines. Conversely administration of IL-22 into the skin of normal mice induced the expression of genes associated with the development of psoriasis-like skin lesions. These data led the authors to suggest that antagonizing IL-22 might provide a new approach to treating individuals with psoriasis.

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Title: IL-22 is required for Th17 cell-mediated pathology in a mouse model of psoriasis-like skin inflammation

Author: Lynette A. Fouser
Wyeth Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.

Source: Karen Honey
Journal of Clinical Investigation

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