A novel combination anti-psoriasis therapy has potential for superior and longer-lasting therapeutic effects than current topical treatments by targeting genetic abnormalities in deeper layers of the skin. This research is being presented at the 2013 American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) Annual Meeting and Exposition, the world's largest pharmaceutical sciences meeting, in San Antonio, Nov. 10-14.
Psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune skin disorder that significantly impacts a patient's quality of life. The overactive immune system triggers skin cells to grow rapidly and then form psoriatic plaques. Approximately 7.5 million people have psoriasis in the United States, according to the American Academy of Dermatology.
Mandip Sachdeva, Ph.D., and Srujan Marepally, Ph.D., along with their colleagues from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, developed a topical formulation of a gene-regulating nanoparticle (Dual-F-NALP) carrying two nucleic acids, which controls the skin cells from developing psoriatic plaques and suppresses inflammation.
To test the effectiveness of their formulation they used the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI), a clinical scoring system from 0
