ProNoxis: Promoting ROS

It is widely accepted that reactive oxygen species promote tissue damage and inflammation in certain settings, but recent data suggest that reactive oxygen species may limit the inflammatory process in certain autoimmune diseases. On the basis of these findings, ProNoxis AB hopes it can develop small molecules that activate the NADPH oxidase 2 complex, which produces reactive oxygen species, to treat autoimmune indications such as rheumatoid arthritis.

In 2003, researchers from Lund University and colleagues reported in Nature Genetics that a mutation in the neutrophil cytosolic factor 1 (NCF1; p47phox) subunit of NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) resulted in low production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and increased susceptibility to severe arthritis in rats...