I have been involved in co-mentoring a postdoctoral Clinical Research Fellow within the Dermatology Branch over the past three years. During this time, we completed one translational study using recombinant human interleukin-10 (rhIL-10), a potent anti-inflammatory cytokine, in 28 patients with psoriasis. rhIL-10, when compared to placebo, induced modest improvement in psoriatic lesions. However, this clinical response was not maintained over the 12 week study period, despite laboratory evidence that pro-inflammatory cytokine production by blood cells was continually suppressed by rhIL-10. Recently, we have just begun our second clinical study. It is a pilot project designed to determine whether intravenous Micellar Paclitaxel is potentially efficacious for patients with severe psoriasis. Paclitaxel demonstrates anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory properties, in addition to its better known anti-angiogenic and anti-proliferative effects. As was done in the rhIL-10 study, experiments are being performed in my laboratory on patient samples to help gain insight into potential biologic correlates of clinical efficacy.
