A cyclic peptide in a long-term Graves’ disease mouse model
Innovative peptides have been conceived to treat several autoimmune diseases. For the treatment of Graves´ disease (GD), newly designed cyclic peptides mimic the cylindrical loops of the extracellular A domain of a pivotal protein which is involved in the disease process, the thyroid stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR). These peptides act as tolerizing compounds, i. e. they re-establish tolerance towards the antigen. In long-term GD models, they improved all disease symptoms after 2-3 monthly injections. However, they did not induce any immune response in naïve mice.
A cyclic peptide significantly improves thyroid function, thyrotropin-receptor antibodies and orbital mucine /collagen content in a long-term Graves’ disease mouse model
Diana T* , Ungerer M* , Wüster C , Faßbender J, Li ZM, Reimann A, Holthoff HP, Kanitz M, Kahaly GJ. A cyclic peptide significantly improves thyroid function, thyrotropin-receptor antibodies and orbital mucine /collagen content in a long-term Graves’ disease mouse model. J Autoimmun 2021;122:102666; doi: 10.1016/j.jaut.2021.102666
*shared first authorship
Novel histological method
Standard histological processing produces excellent staining of sections for most tissues, but fails to yield satisfactory results in orbits or eyeballs. A novel protocol using tissue block staining and domestic adhesive tapes resulted in qualified integral cryo-sections of whole orbits or eyeballs, and proved to be superior to existing histological processing methods, yielding a 100% success rate.
Li ZM , Ungerer M , Faßbender J , Wenhart C, Holthoff HP, Münch G. Tissue block staining and domestic adhesive tape yield qualified integral sections of adult mouse orbits and eyeballs. PLoS One 2021;16(8):e0255363; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255363