New arthritis treatment developed in Australia

Researchers at the University of Queensland (UQ) in Australia have developed a breakthrough rheumatoid arthritis treatment targeting the underlying cause of the disease rather than the symptoms.

Lead researcher Ranjeny Thomas from UQ Diamantina Institute said the treatment worked by causing a patient's immune system to ignore a peptide it wrongly fought, Xinhua news agency reported.

"It's rather re-educating the immune system so that instead of responding to that enemy to actually stop responding or to make a counter regulatory peace-making effort against the enemy so that things will quieten down," she said.

Researchers designed the treatment for people with the most common form of rheumatoid arthritis called CCP-positive.