Oxford BioDynamics is one of six consortium partners to examine and address why immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) remit and relapse, with a particular focus on Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).
The consortium, which consists of three UK universities, one German commercial company, the NHS and Oxford Biodynamics, has been awarded a £2.8 million from the Medical Research Council (MRC), said Oxford BioDynamics Plc, a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of novel epigenetic biomarkers for use within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry.
Oxford BioDynamics’ role within the consortium is to use its technology platform, EpiSwitch, to identify epigenetic biomarkers in a RA patient population that are associated with impending relapse in RA.
Around 10 million people in the UK have a form of arthritis, of which almost 700,000 have RA. There is no known cure for the condition, which causes joint pain and swelling, stiffness and fatigue. Without adequate therapy, the average life expectancy for a patient with RA may be shortened by 3-7 years, and those with severe forms of RA may die as much as 10-15 years earlier than expected.
Christian Hoyer Millar, CEO of Oxford BioDynamics, said that working together will enable gaining a greater understanding of the relapsing and remitting aspect of RA.
“The work we will undertake as part of the BIO-FLARE study has the potential to lead us to the development of an epigenetic-based prognostic test for RA flares, an important unmet medical need,” he said.