Gene Silencing Therapy Stops the Itch of Psoriasis

A team of Harvard researchers has identified a promising new approach for treating psoriasis — a topical lotion containing nucleic acids that transiently disrupt inflammatory gene activity. This ionic liquid (IL) contains small interfering RNA, or siRNA, which when used in an experimental mouse model of the itchy skin disease, drastically reduced the levels of inflammation-causing cytokines and soothed symptoms. All this without any observable systemic side effects. This breakthrough has been published in the journal Science Advances.

The study’s first author, Abhirup Mandal, believes that IL therapy is transformative in the field of dermatological disorders such as psoriasis, saying “Compared to other technologies that have demonstrated delivery of nucleic acids to the skin, our IL platform offers unique opportunities in terms of tunability, an excellent safety profile, and economical scale-up.”

In psoriasis, skin cells multiply at an abnormally accelerated rate, up to 10 times faster than normal. The result is inflamed red patches and scaly, dry skin that tends to flare up around the scalp, elbows, knees, and lower back. Over 125 million around the world suffer from the chronic irritation of psoriasis and treatment options are limited.