Post by heatherly on Apr 21, 2020 12:07:00 GMT -5
Antibodies Could Be ‘Radically Life-Changing’ New Treatment for OCD and Other Mental Disorders
Mental health conditions such as obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) could be treated in a new way using drugs that target the immune system instead of the central nervous system, suggests exciting new research.
Scientists at Queen Mary University of London and the University of Roehampton, London, have discovered that patients suffering from OCD have increased levels of a protein called Immuno-moodulin (Imood) in their lymphocytes, a type of immune cell.
Mice with high levels of this protein were also found to exhibit behaviors that are characteristic of anxiety and stress, such as digging and excessive grooming.
When the researchers treated the mice with an antibody that neutralized Imood, the animals’ anxiety levels reduced.
Scientists at Queen Mary University of London and the University of Roehampton, London, have discovered that patients suffering from OCD have increased levels of a protein called Immuno-moodulin (Imood) in their lymphocytes, a type of immune cell.
Mice with high levels of this protein were also found to exhibit behaviors that are characteristic of anxiety and stress, such as digging and excessive grooming.
When the researchers treated the mice with an antibody that neutralized Imood, the animals’ anxiety levels reduced.
The findings have led the researchers to file a patent application for the antibody and they are now working with a drug company to develop a potential treatment for human patients.
::Sgc7Hl4::
creaking floors, you make me laugh,