New approaches to treat Psoriatic Arthritis

Dr A. MacKenzie, Professor S. Ward, Professor N. Mchugh

Psoriatic arthritis affects approximately 1 in 3 people with pre-existing psoriasis and up to 400,000 people in England. It causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the joints, accompanied by chronic disfiguring skin disease, and may result in severe disability. Current therapies target specific signals between cells to reduce joint inflammation. However, at least a third of all patients do not adequately respond to the commonly used drugs including newer biological agents. We have special interest in a new emerging pathway in inflammatory cells called the ‘inflammasome’. This studentship aims to advance the health of these patients by investigating the role of the inflammasome in psoriatic arthritis. This proposal will be in collaboration with the local Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases, a centre of excellence for the treatment of psoriatic arthritis.