FYI Chris Gupta
<http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/health/story.html?s=z/reuters/980730/ health/stories/lyme9_1.html>http://dailynews.yahoo.com/headlines/health/sto ry.html?s=z/reuters/980730/health/stories/lyme9_1.html ---------- Thursday July 30 7:52 PM EDT Potential cause of Lyme arthritis discovered NEW YORK, Jul 30 (Reuters) -- A human protein called LFA-1 appears to be a second target for an immune system activated to fight the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. The finding may explain why some individuals with Lyme disease develop arthritis-like complications that persist even after the infection has been treated. The report is published in the July 31st issue of the journal Science. About 1 in 10 patients with Lyme arthritis develop a treatment-resistant form of the disorder, which usually affects one knee and can last for years. Researchers proposed that immune cells directed against the Lyme disease spirochete may also mistakenly attack proteins normally found on cells, releasing substances called cytokines that may cause tissue damage and joint destruction. Dr. Dawn M. Gross of Tufts University in Boston, Massachusetts, and multicenter researchers explain that immune reactivity in Lyme disease is directed against the outer surface protein A (OspA) of Borrelia burgdorferi, the Lyme disease spirochete. They identified the specific section of this protein that activates immune cells when the body is infected with the Lyme disease bacteria. Gross and others then found that this OspA protein was very similar physically to a portion of a protein found on human cells, human leukocyte function-associated antigen-1, or hLFA-1. The researchers also found that this type of overactive immune response is most common in people with particular genes that make them more susceptible to autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. In these diseases, the patient's immune system is believed to play a role in triggering the disease process. The findings offer a potential model for the mechanisms underlying treatment-resistant Lyme disease arthritis. Gross and colleagues explain that "...a vicious cycle is initiated so that, even after elimination of the (Lyme disease bacteria) by antibiotic therapy, the OspA-primed T (immune) cells remain activated by stimulation with LFA-1." The resulting inflammatory response may cause joint damage. Steve Dickman, a writer in Cambridge, Massachusetts, notes in an accompanying editorial that the new findings raise concern that some individuals vaccinated with an OspA-based Lyme disease vaccine could have autoimmune reactions. "Ongoing surveillance will be important" to detect any such adverse effects of the vaccines in development, Dickman says. SOURCE: Science 1998;281:631-632, 703-705. ---------- Previous Story: </headlines/health/story.html?s=z/reuters/980730/health/stories/male8_1.htm> Age tied to poor breast cancer survival in men Next Story: </headlines/health/story.html?s=z/reuters/980730/health/stories/test10_1.ht m>Follow-up needed for testicular cancer patients ---------- </headlines/health/index.htm>Thu Jul 30 | </headlines/health/story.htm>Wed Jul 29 | </headlines/health/story.htm>Tue Jul 28 | </headlines/health/story.htm>Mon Jul 27 | </headlines/health/story.htm>Fri Jul 24 </headlines/.htm>Index | </headlines/top_stories/.htm>Top Stories | </headlines/business/.htm>Business | </headlines/technology/.htm>Tech | </headlines/politics/.htm>Politics | </headlines/world/.htm>World | </headlines/health/.htm>Health | </headlines/entertainment/.htm>Entertainment | </headlines/sports/.htm>Sports | </headlines/local/.htm>Local ---------- <http://www.yahoo.com/info/faq/news/health_faq.html>Questions or Comments Copyright © 1998 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. -- The silver-list is a moderated forum for discussion of colloidal silver. To join or quit silver-list or silver-digest send an e-mail message to: silver-list-requ...@eskimo.com -or- silver-digest-requ...@eskimo.com with the word subscribe or unsubscribe in the subject: line. To post, address your message to: silver-list@eskimo.com List maintainer: Mike Devour <mdev...@id.net>
