The Arthritis Research Laboratory:

Arthritis is highly prevalent worldwide and it includes over 100 disease types, the most common of which are rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, osteoarthritis as well as inflammatory metabolic arthritis (e.g., gout and pseudogout). All of these types share common features that cause joint pain and synovitis that lead to articular and cartilage destruction.

Our lab concentrates on two main areas of study:

• Personalized medicine for arthritis patients. Treatment options include various types of medications: conventional synthetic disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, biological therapies and targeted synthetic small molecules. However, no single therapeutic mode is affective for all patients, and there are no predictive biomarkers for most drugs. The identification of such biomarkers would greatly assist in differentiating between individuals who are likely to benefit from a specific therapy from those who are not, thereby establishing an urgent need for their delineation. Our ongoing project is designed to apply ex-vivo testing methods for response to a variety of anti-rheumatic drugs.

• New approaches for drug administration. The current clinical treatment of synovial inflammation relies upon intra-articular administration of anti-inflammatory and pain relief drugs comprised mainly of glucocorticoid (GCs) injections directly to the joints. While GCs provide immunosuppressive and anti-inflammatory effects, long-term GCs injections are associated with significant side effects, such as osteoporosis and cartilage loss. Novel alternative approaches to manage inflammatory arthritis remain an unmet need of our We investigate the feasibility of alternative approaches that might be effective in limiting inflammation, reducesymptoms, slow disease progression and further joint damage.

See our website for details on current on-going projects in our lab.