Novel Therapeutic Targets of Rheumatoid Arthritis

A special issue of Cells (ISSN 2073-4409). This special issue belongs to the section "Cellular Pathology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2025 | Viewed by 1162

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
1. School of Biotechnology, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland
2. Medical School, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece
Interests: immunology; rheumatology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Rheumatoid arthritis is a common chronic inflammatory disease affecting approximately 20 million people worldwide, with a tremendous impact on the quality of life of patients and significant costs for healthcare systems and society at large. Importantly, there are no cures. The increased utilisation of single-cell and spatial RNAseq has revealed new immunological pathways, but it has also highlighted the complexity of disease pathogenesis and the poor specificity of currently available treatments. While novel therapies, including CAR-T cells, have recently been proposed for the treatment of patients with RA, there is an urgent need for targeted therapeutic interventions and the identification of prognostic markers of responses to treatment. Therefore, we would like to invite the submission of primary research and review articles that utilise, expand, and validate recently identified, or propose new, molecular pathways that can be targeted in the treatment of patients with RA.

Dr. Achilleas Floudas
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • rheumatoid arthritis
  • translational immunology
  • transcriptomics
  • novel therapeutic targets

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

31 pages, 1122 KiB  
Review
The Contribution of Macrophage Plasticity to Inflammatory Arthritis and Their Potential as Therapeutic Targets
by Karina Kulakova, Tope Remilekun Lawal, Eoghan Mccarthy and Achilleas Floudas
Cells 2024, 13(18), 1586; https://doi.org/10.3390/cells13181586 - 20 Sep 2024
Viewed by 901
Abstract
Inflammatory arthritis are common chronic inflammatory autoimmune diseases characterised by progressive, destructive inflammation of the joints leading to a loss of function and significant comorbidities; importantly, there are no cures and only 20% of patients achieve drug-free remission for over 2 years. Macrophages [...] Read more.
Inflammatory arthritis are common chronic inflammatory autoimmune diseases characterised by progressive, destructive inflammation of the joints leading to a loss of function and significant comorbidities; importantly, there are no cures and only 20% of patients achieve drug-free remission for over 2 years. Macrophages play a vital role in maintaining homeostasis, however, under the wrong environmental cues, become drivers of chronic synovial inflammation. Based on the current “dogma”, M1 macrophages secrete pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, promoting tissue degradation and joint and bone erosion which over time lead to accelerated disease progression. On the other hand, M2 macrophages secrete anti-inflammatory mediators associated with wound healing, tissue remodelling and the resolution of inflammation. Currently, four subtypes of M2 macrophages have been identified, namely M2a, M2b, M2c and M2d. However, more subtypes may exist due to macrophage plasticity and the ability for repolarisation. Macrophages are highly plastic, and polarisation exists as a continuum with diverse intermediate phenotypes. This plasticity is achieved by a highly amenable epigenome in response to environmental stimuli and shifts in metabolism. Initiating treatment during the early stages of disease is important for improved prognosis and patient outcomes. Currently, no treatment targeting macrophages specifically is available. Such therapeutics are being investigated in ongoing clinical trials. The repolarisation of pro-inflammatory macrophages towards the anti-inflammatory phenotype has been proposed as an effective approach in targeting the M1/M2 imbalance, and in turn is a potential therapeutic strategy for IA diseases. Therefore, elucidating the mechanisms that govern macrophage plasticity is fundamental for the success of novel macrophage targeting therapeutics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Therapeutic Targets of Rheumatoid Arthritis)
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