Researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine have pinpointed for the first time a bacterium that could trigger rheumatoid arthritis. Their look at the gut microbiome’s potential role in the autoimmune disorder could offer clues in defining what patients are most at risk for the disabling disease.
Kristi Kuhn, MD, PhD, an associate professor of rheumatology, leading the research team including the MSTP (Medical Scientist Training Program) student Meagan Chriswell who presented an abstract of the work at last fall’s American College of Rheumatology annual conference. Additional key CU Anschutz researchers who contributed to the work included V. Michael Holers, MD, Kevin Deane, MD, PhD, and M. Kristen Demoruelle, MD, PhD.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disorder that affects close to 1% of the U.S. population, or about 3 million people.
Early results in the study, led by the CU Anschutz researchers and involving multiple universities, connect the bacterium to people at risk for the joint disease. “This is the first time it’s been shown – the principle that a bacterium could drive an immune response related to rheumatoid arthritis,” Kuhn said.
Below, Kuhn shares what the team has learned and how its research is helping to define who is at risk for RA.