Scleroderma, a chronic and currently incurable orphan disease where tissue injury causes potentially lethal skin and lung scarring, remains poorly understood. However, the defining characteristic of systemic sclerosis, the most serious form of scleroderma, is irreversible and progressive scarring that affects the skin and internal organs.

According to the study, treatments that prevented NAD+ reduction in the mice, whether by boosting the levels of the nutrient genetically or pharmacologically, prevented scarring in the skin, lungs and abdominal wall. "This is one of the first studies to find a relationship between CD38 and scleroderma, as well as the linking between inflammation and metabolism to skin and organ scarring. Boosting NAD+ via the precursor nicotinamide riboside, a safe and inexpensive dietary supplement, prevented skin and other organ scarring, providing the researchers a previously undiscovered pathogenic role of CD38 in scleroderma scarring.

"These results open the door to entirely novel treatments for fibrosis and scleroderma. Using precision medicine, these treatments could be selectively targeted to block CD38 in scleroderma patients who have elevated CD38, says study author Bo Shi, Ph.D., a research assistant professor of dermatology at Northwestern Medicine.

Regards

John
Editorial Assistant
Immunogenetics Open Access