There is a new experimental treatment that has been developed for an array of autoimmune diseases. This treatment is called liposomal clodronate. While this treatment has thus far only been tried on mice, it has produced promising results. Anytime you talk about diseases and cures, the terminology you use can become dense jargon. However it is possible to understand this treatment in simple terms.
A disease called Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia, or AIHA for short, affects people by destroying their red blood cells. People need red blood cells to live. They distribute oxygen from the lungs to all of the cells in your body. When AIHA strikes, the disease instructs some of your white blood cells, known as macrophages, to attack your own body.
The word macrophage is made up of two Greek words: macro- which means large, and phage, which means to eat. So these 'big eaters' begin consuming the red blood cells in the sick person's body. This is bad because the fewer red blood cells you have, the more difficult it is for your body to get oxygen.
So scientists have developed a class of chemicals called liposomal clodronates which stops the macrophages from eating your red blood cells. They use a Trojan effect, like the Trojan horse that smuggled soldiers into the city of Troy. These clodronates smuggle chemicals inside of the 'big eaters' and destroy them from the inside. This stops them from eating your red blood cells and allows you to get the oxygen you need.
This solution is only a patch, though. It does not fix the whole problem. Macrophages are not bad guys. When they are healthy, they are the main ones that protect your body against diseases. They are only dangerous when they have been taken over by AIHA.
When you have a common cold, you take an antihistamine to just treat the symptoms so that your body has time to fight off the actual disease. That is the way liposomal clodronates work, like the antihistamine. They treat the symptoms of AIHA until scientists are able to find and stop the disease itself.
A disease called Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia, or AIHA for short, affects people by destroying their red blood cells. People need red blood cells to live. They distribute oxygen from the lungs to all of the cells in your body. When AIHA strikes, the disease instructs some of your white blood cells, known as macrophages, to attack your own body.
The word macrophage is made up of two Greek words: macro- which means large, and phage, which means to eat. So these 'big eaters' begin consuming the red blood cells in the sick person's body. This is bad because the fewer red blood cells you have, the more difficult it is for your body to get oxygen.
So scientists have developed a class of chemicals called liposomal clodronates which stops the macrophages from eating your red blood cells. They use a Trojan effect, like the Trojan horse that smuggled soldiers into the city of Troy. These clodronates smuggle chemicals inside of the 'big eaters' and destroy them from the inside. This stops them from eating your red blood cells and allows you to get the oxygen you need.
This solution is only a patch, though. It does not fix the whole problem. Macrophages are not bad guys. When they are healthy, they are the main ones that protect your body against diseases. They are only dangerous when they have been taken over by AIHA.
When you have a common cold, you take an antihistamine to just treat the symptoms so that your body has time to fight off the actual disease. That is the way liposomal clodronates work, like the antihistamine. They treat the symptoms of AIHA until scientists are able to find and stop the disease itself.
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