News

New Inflammation Biomarker May Be Useful in AS, Study Suggests

The ratio of two blood proteins, fibrinogen and albumin, accurately measures inflammation severity with different types of spondyloarthritis (SpA), including ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a study showed. The accuracy of this biomarker closely matched those of standard inflammatory markers used in research and clinical practice. Further studies are needed to…

Bimekizumab Leads to Rapid Clinical Improvements in Phase 3 Trials

A year of treatment with bimekizumab was safe and significantly eased symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in participants of two Phase 3 clinical trials, regardless of whether they had been treated previously with inhibitors of the pro-inflammatory molecule TNF. “Treatment with bimekizumab resulted in rapid and clinically relevant…

Canada OKs High-concentration Hadlima Biosimilar Formulation

Health Canada has approved a high-concentration formulation of Hadlima (adalimumab-bwwd), a biosimilar to Humira (adalimumab), for treating ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and other diseases. A biosimilar is a medical product designed to be identical — with similar properties, as well as comparable safety and effectiveness — to an…

Long-standing Link Between AS and HLA-B27 Explained

Some immune T-cells that react to microbial proteins also target normal human proteins in people who carry HLA-B27 variants, the strongest genetic risk factor contributing to ankylosing spondylitis (AS), a study revealed. The shape of the protein fragments targeted by the immune T-cells, whether human or bacterial, was almost…

Plans Afoot to Create Algorithm That Predicts Treatment Responses

The biotech company Girihlet will collaborate with Mayo Clinic to develop an algorithm that evaluates the effects of immune-suppressing treatments in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), Girihlet announced. Under the so-called “know-how agreement,” Girihlet will use its proprietary ImmuneScanner technology to monitor changes in immune T-cells…

Axial Spondyloarthritis Not Tied to Higher Preeclampsia Risk: Study

Pregnant women with axial spondyloarthritis (AxS) are not at an increased risk of preeclampsia, unlike those with other rheumatic conditions, a new study suggests. Using more than 3,000 health records, researchers in Sweden and Denmark evaluated preeclampsia risk in pregnant women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), AxS, and psoriatic arthritis. “Based…

Evidence for Most AS Blood Biomarkers Weak: Umbrella Review

Platelet counts and blood levels of inflammatory proteins interleukin-23 (IL-23) and interleukin-17 (IL-17) were identified as the strongest potential non-genetic biomarkers of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in a recent umbrella review study. The study, which looked at 43 previously identified biomarkers, found the evidence was weak for most others. The…