The medical research team at U of Alabama have just announced their discovery of an immune protein mutation that plays an important role in autoimmune diseases, including Lupus and Multiple Sclerosis.
When the immune system 'misfires' and attacks our own tissues, inflammatory processes begin that can seriously damage different organs in the body.
Lupus is one of the most severe autoimmune diseases, and it can affect several different organs in the body, including the kidneys, and the lungs.
The newly identified protein, called the Fc receptor, regulates the production of antibodies whose usual function is to attack bacteria in the human body. Earlier, scientists though that Fc receptors' function was primarily to shut down antibody production, but in 15% of the population, a new kind of Fc receptor has the additional function of activating antibody production. This new or 'mutated' kind of Fc receptor is the subject of the study that uncovered the mutation.
If the Fc antibody 'activator' produces too many antibodies, then an autoimmune disease results.
This new Fc receptor is a mutation of the Fc receptor whose function is to shut down production of antibodies.
If a test is developed, which is in the program, that could identify the Fc at an early stage, it could also aide doctors in early identification and treatment of Lupus and other like autoimmune diseases.
The discovery of the protein will also enable pharmaceutical industries to test medicines that will target specifically those patient with the gene mutation for the Fc protein.
And that is because approximately 33% of all autoimmune sufferers to not respond to conventional antibody based treatments.
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