In the Summer 2011 Rosacea Review, The National Rosacea Society announced that they are funding 3 studies in new areas of rosacea research.
This is great news; not only is the NRS continuing to fund 5 existing studies, it is funding the 3 new research areas.
1. PACAP and Rosacea
Dr. Ferda Cevikbas will be studying the role of PACAP, a neuropeptide in rosacea.
They plan to define the distribution of PACAP in skin samples from rosacea patients, determine whether PACAP induces inflammation and test whether cathelicidin — a known factor in rosacea’s pathophysiology — modulates the release of PACAP. The researchers also plan to test whether countering the effects of PACAP is beneficial and may thus be used as a rosacea therapy.
2. Cytokines in Ocular Rosacea
Dr. Edward Wladis, assistant professor of ophthalmology at Albany Medical College, was awarded $12,100 to identify specific cytokines — molecules that regulate the immune system — that are involved in ocular rosacea by studying eyelid tissue from individuals with and without the disorder. Dr. Wladis noted that while inflammation is normally a healthy part of the immune response, aberrations in the cytokines’ concentrations and functioning in rosacea may result in unhealthy and prolonged inflammation.
3. Th17 Cells and Inflammation
Dr. Richard Granstein, chairman of dermatology at Cornell University, and colleagues were awarded $25,000 to study the potential role of Th17 cells, a newly discovered class of cells that appear to be involved in a number of inflammatory and autoimmune disorders. Earlier study results strongly indicated that release of ATP — a neurotransmitter and carrier of chemical energy throughout the body — from nerves under stressful situations may initiate a sequence of events leading to or exacerbating inflammation in the skin. This study will investigate whether this inflammation results because Th17 cells are produced during this process in rosacea.
