Inflammation reduced by single low-magnitude electric pulse – implications for rheumatoid arthritis treatment
Low-level electrical stimulation interacts with the body’s nerves to reduce inflammation, and the vagus nerve is particularly important, says a team that works in the field of bioelectronic medicine.
Bioelectronic medicine is a combination of molecular medicine, bioengineering and neuroscience that aims to provide an alternative for treating a variety of diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn’s disease.
Before now, experts didn’t know which vagus nerve fibre types were responsible for reducing the body’s inflammatory activity. The current work shows that activation of either motor or sensory vagus nerve bundles can lower inflammation.
“Identifying the exact role of the different nerve bundles in the inflammatory reflex bolsters our understanding of the relationship between the central nervous system and the vagus nerve,” explains Dr Kevin J Tracey, who is working on the project. “Furthermore, we now know that stimulating the vagus nerve for as little as half a millisecond is enough to inhibit tumor necrosis factor (TNF) production.”
The researchers also found that only low-intensity, short-duration, electric pulses were needed to reduce the production of inflammation-inducing cytokines. Repetition of the pulses did not increase the success of the treatment in this experiment, suggesting that a single stimulating pulse could be enough.
“Seeing successful results with low-level electrical current is a significant finding,” says Dr Yaakov Levine, senior research scientist. “This indicates the potential for limited side effects, as well as promise for device miniaturization, both of which will be important to bringing vagus nerve stimulation into the mainstream.”
Subscribe to Arthritis Digest, the UK’s fastest growing arthritis magazine for all the latest arthritis news, reviews and celebrity interviews. You’ll know what your doctor is talking about, what new drugs are in the pipeline and be up to date on helpful products. Hard copy and digital versions both available. Click here for more information.
Image credit: www.stockmonkeys.com
