New Delhi, Oct 2 : In a groundbreaking development, researchers at the University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) have unveiled an innovative “inverse vaccine” that has demonstrated the potential to completely reverse autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and type 1 diabetes. This remarkable achievement does not compromise the overall immune system’s functionality, as commonly seen with conventional vaccines.
Unlike traditional vaccines that instruct the immune system to target specific pathogens as threats, this novel vaccine takes a contrasting approach by erasing the immune system’s memory of a particular molecule. While this memory erasure might be undesirable in the context of infectious diseases, it proves highly effective in halting autoimmune responses, characteristic of conditions like multiple sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis, where the immune system erroneously attacks the body’s healthy tissues.
Published in the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering, this vaccine leverages the liver’s natural process of marking molecules from decomposed cells with “do not attack” signals to prevent autoimmune reactions to naturally occurring cell death. The researchers coupled an antigen, representing the molecule under attack by the immune system, with a molecule mimicking a fragment of aged cells that the liver recognizes as friendly rather than hostile.
The study successfully demonstrated the vaccine’s ability to halt autoimmune reactions similar to those seen in multiple sclerosis.
Jeffrey Hubbell, the Eugene Bell Professor in Tissue Engineering and lead author of the study, remarked, “In the past, we showed that we could use this approach to prevent autoimmunity. But what is so exciting about this work is that we have shown that we can treat diseases like multiple sclerosis after there is already ongoing inflammation, which is more useful in a real-world context.”
Currently, autoimmune diseases are primarily treated with broad-spectrum immunosuppressive drugs, which can be effective but also come with significant side effects. Hubbell explained, “If we could treat patients with an inverse vaccine instead, it could be much more specific and lead to fewer side effects.”
Encouragingly, preliminary phase I safety trials have already been conducted for an antigen therapy based on this preclinical research, with a focus on celiac disease and ongoing trials in multiple sclerosis. These trials are being conducted in collaboration with Swiss pharmaceutical company Anokion SA, which provided funding for the research and was cofounded by Jeffrey Hubbell, who also serves as a consultant, board member, and equity holder.
While clinically approved inverse vaccines are not yet available, the researchers are enthusiastic about advancing this groundbreaking technology to revolutionize the treatment of autoimmune diseases.
