What is it about?

The novel therapeutic approach demonstrated by Lutterotti et al. in their study utilises the body’s own red blood cells (erythrocytes), which are coupled with the target antigens that are attacked by immune cells in the brain in MS. The antigen-conjugated cells are rapidly taken up by the liver, just like the aged erythrocytes that normally die off every day, and are broken down in a way that signals to the immune system not to mount an immune response against them. This therapeutic approach harnesses this very natural mechanism by linking the signal from dying red blood cells to the target antigens of MS, thereby inducing tolerance to them. In this way, the autoimmune disease could be halted in a highly targeted manner and without side effects – a goal long pursued by immunologists, which could also be applied to many other of the more than one hundred autoimmune diseases.

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Why is it important?

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease, which particularly affects young adults and causes a wide range of symptoms such as visual and sensory disturbances, paralysis and severe fatigue, can already be treated effectively; however, all approved therapies suppress the immune system non-specifically and some have significant side effects. The disease mechanisms underlying MS are triggered by immune cells, in particular so-called T lymphocytes, which normally serve to defend the body against pathogens – viruses, bacteria and fungi – as well as tumours, but which, in MS, mistakenly damage the brain and spinal cord.

Perspectives

Autoimmune diseases have been steadily increasing in recent decades and affect more than 5 per cent of the population. Treating this diseases by re-educating the immune system and keeping the normal immune system unaffected will significantly reduce the burden of the diseases and consequences of long term immunosuppression. The therapy and mechanisms demonstrated in this paper are an important step towards achieving this goal.

Andreas Lutterotti
Cellerys

Read the Original

This page is a summary of: Treatment of multiple sclerosis with peptide-coupled red blood cells induces antigen-specific T regulatory cells, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, August 2026, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2614908123.
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