SELF-DESTRUCTION STOPPERS

Abstract

WITH A NEW screening process, researchers have found small molecules that specifi cally bind to the surface of a mouse’s autoreactive T cells, a kind of immune cell that attacks its host. The work could pave the way for new treatments for multiple sclerosis (MS) or other conditions. Most marketed drugs for treating autoimmune diseases such as MS nonselectively adjust immune system function, which can lead to flulike side effects. Searches for more selective agents have focused on finding out what triggers the autoreactive T cells, but these approaches have been slow to bear fruit, says Thomas Kodadek of Scripps Florida. Now, Kodadek and coworkers have developed a screen that doesn’t require that information. They begin with T-cell samples taken from mice with an MS-like condition. The team then isolates autoreactive T cells from the samples and uses them to search for specific binders in a library of synthetic peptoids, which are peptide mimics. The ...