There are more and more examples of the ways in which we can benefit from our bacteria. According to new research, this is true for the skin as well. The work has shown that the most common bacteria on human skin secrete a protein which protects us from the reactive oxygen species thought to contribute to several skin diseases. The protein has an equally strong effect on dangerous oxygen species as known antioxidants such as vitamin C and vitamin E.
A potential therapeutic target for the treatment of psoriasis has been identified. Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the skin that affects up to a 2% of the population and which has still no cure. The study shows that the TREX2 gene has a relevant role in the inflammatory response that develops during the illness.
There aren't any effective treatments for the disease with the hard-to-pronounce-name, ichthyosis. The rare and perplexing genetic disease causes skin to be disfigured by redness and dark scales across one's entire body. Now, for the first time, new research has found the reason that the disease causes the red skin and has a promising biologic drug to begin testing soon in clinical trials.
Assessing coronary artery calcium (CAC) is a measure of the severity of atherosclerosis (clogged arteries) and a cornerstone for screening for risk of future cardiac events. The inflammatory skin condition psoriasis has been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Type 2 diabetes is a high-risk disease associated with increased cardiovascular risk.
We all know that a brush with poison ivy leaves us with an itchy painful rash. Now researchers have discovered the molecular cause of this irritation. The finding brings us a step closer to designing agents to block this mechanism and sheds light on other serious skin conditions, such as psoriasis.
A new national survey in the United States of nearly 600 individuals with psoriasis, reveals that although patients have numerous treatment options, they have difficulty finding treatment plans that work. In addition, respondents reported a heavy emotional toll, with many feeling isolated and stigmatized due to the condition.
Although the efficacy and safety of biologic and phototherapeutic treatments in treating moderate-to-severe psoriasis are well known, not all patients respond well to monotherapy and may require a combination of both types of therapy. There have been few studies investigating the safety and efficacy of combination treatment; now, a review shows that combination treatment is safe and viable.
People with psoriasis have an increased risk for cardiovascular disease. Treating psoriasis may help improve cardiovascular symptoms by reducing skin inflammation, which in turn leads to less inflammation elsewhere in the body, say researchers.
About 80 percent of patients with moderate to severe psoriasis saw their disease completely or almost completely cleared with a new drug called ixekizumab, according to three large, long-term clinical trials.
"A pathological and very complex autoimmune reaction of the skin": This is the definition doctors and scientists use to describe psoriasis, a disease that affects one to three percent of the population. It is characterized by accelerated cell division in the upper dermal layers with proliferated skin cells and an inflammation of the skin beneath. Many different cells are involved in the complex processes: skin cells (keratinocytes) and cells of the immune system, among others T lymphocytes, macrophages, mast cells and others.
Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin condition that affects some 125 million people worldwide. It is characterized by itchy, scaly skin plaques. The exact cause of psoriasis is unclear. But mounting evidence implicates the immune system in the overproduction of cell-signalling molecules called cytokines, which stimulate skin cells called keratinocytes to express genes that maintain an inflammatory microenvironment. Now, scientists have found more evidence that a cytokine called IL-17A is especially critical in this process.
Compounds derived from fire ant venom can reduce skin thickening and inflammation in a mouse model of psoriasis, Emory and Case Western scientists have shown.
Nail pitting is characterized by small indents or depressions on the nail surface. Learn about the causes, symptoms, how it is diagnosed, and treatments.
Eczema is one of the most common skin conditions in the United States, and research into treatment is ongoing. Learn about using probiotics to treat eczema
