DeCure for Autoimmune interstitial lung disease-arthritis syndrome
DeCure's autonomous Respiratory AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for autoimmune interstitial lung disease-arthritis syndrome — screening already-approved drugs against its 1-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleAutoimmune interstitial lung disease-arthritis syndrome maps to a 1-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for autoimmune interstitial lung disease-arthritis syndrome is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
coat protein complex I subunit alpha (COPA) — COPA is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
helix sheet +drag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 6PBG · 1.72 Å · ligand L(+)-TARTARIC ACID (TLA). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
Rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD) is a serious pulmonary complication responsible for 10–20% of mortality, with a mean survival of 5–8 years. No therapeutic recommendations exist for its treatment. The possible pulmonary toxicity of many disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and their unclear efficacy on pulmonary disease complicate treatment decisions. Joint and lung involvement should be evaluated independently. Some similarities between RA-ILD and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, along with results from the INBUILD trial, suggest a possible future role for antifibrotic agents, but this remains prospective.
Aptamer-based proteomic profiling of 1321 proteins from 159 patients (RA-ILD, RA without ILD, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, and healthy controls) identified molecular signatures strongly associated with the presence and severity of RA-ILD. These signatures point to unexplored disease pathways and warrant further study as non-invasive diagnostic tools and therapeutic targets. However, the review literature from 2001 to 2020 consistently states that the aetiology and treatment effect of RA-ILD remain unclear, and that predicting its development or progression is difficult.
Multiple studies identify a high prevalence of lung disease in subjects with classifiable RA. Findings that inflammatory airways disease and lung generation of autoimmunity can precede joint symptoms suggest immune reactions in the lung may be involved in the initial development of RA-related autoimmunity. The classification criteria for interstitial pneumonia with autoimmune features (IPAF) were defined in 2015, but further studies to establish IPAF subgroups and treatment modalities for each subgroup are still needed.
What is still missing: adequately powered randomised controlled trials specifically for RA-ILD, validated biomarkers to predict progression and guide therapy, and a clear framework to stratify patients by lung versus joint disease activity. The research agenda outlined in these reviews remains largely unfunded and incomplete.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Journal of Clinical Medicine · 2020 · 119 citations · open access
Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease: Lights and Shadows
AbstractRheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic and systemic inflammatory disease affecting 0.5-1% of the population worldwide. Interstitial lung disease (ILD) is a serious pulmonary complication of RA and it is responsible for 10-20% of mortality, with a mean survival of 5-8 years. However, nowadays there are no therapeutic recommendations for the treatment of RA-ILD. Therapeutic options for RA-ILD are complicated by the possible pulmonary toxicity of many disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and by their unclear efficacy on pulmonary disease. Therefore, joint and lung involvement should be evaluated independently of each other for treatment purposes. On the other hand, some similarities between RA-ILD and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and the results of the recent INBIULD trial suggest a possible future role for antifibrotic agents. From this perspective, we review the current literature describing the pulmonary effects of drugs (immunosuppressants, conventional, biological and target synthetic DMARDs and antifibrotic agents) in patients with RA and ILD. In addition, we suggest a framework for the management of RA-ILD patients and outline a research agenda to fill the gaps in knowledge about this challenging patient cohort.
International Journal of Clinical Rheumatology · 2014 · 47 citations
The lung may play a role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis
AbstractMultiple studies have identified strong associations between the lung and rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Such studies identify a high prevalence of lung disease, both airways and parenchymal disease, in subjects with clinically classifiable RA. It has been suggested that lung disease in RA results from targeting of the lung from circulating autoimmunity or other factors such as medications. However, findings that lung disease, specifically inflammatory airways disease, and lung generation of autoimmunity can be present before the onset of joint symptoms suggest that immune reactions in the lung may be involved in the initial development of RA-related autoimmunity. Herein we review these issues in detail, as well as outline a potential research agenda to understand the natural history of lung involvement in RA and its relation to the overall pathogenesis of RA.
Archives of Disease in Childhood · 2001 · 23 citations · open access
Current topic: Prehospital emergency care for children
AbstractAlthough interstitial lung disease (ILD) causes significant morbidity and mortality in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), it is difficult to predict the development or progression of ILD, emphasising the need for improved discovery through minimally invasive diagnostic tests. Aptamer-based proteomic profiling was used to assess 1321 proteins from 159 patients with rheumatoid arthritis with interstitial lung disease (RA-ILD), RA without ILD, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and healthy controls. Differential expression and gene set enrichment analyses revealed molecular signatures that are strongly associated with the presence and severity of RA-ILD and provided insight into unexplored pathways of disease. These warrant further study as non-invasive diagnostic tools and future therapeutic targets.
The Korean Journal of Internal Medicine · 2020 · 5 citations · open access
Recent advances in the diagnosis and management of interstitial pneumonia with autoimmune features: the perspective of rheumatologists
AbstractInterstitial pneumonia with autoimmune feature (IPAF) is a recently established disease entity that is comprised of interstitial lung diseases with evidence of autoimmune features but that does not fulfill the criteria for definite autoimmune rheumatic diseases. The classification criteria for IPAF were defined by the European Respiratory Society and American Thoracic Society in 2015. However, further studies to establish IPAF subgroups and treatment modalities for each subgroup are still needed. In this review, we discuss recent advances regarding IPAF and raise critical points for the diagnosis and management of patients with IPAF from the perspective of rheumatologists.
Early diagnosis and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis associated interstitial lung disease
AbstractInterstitial lung disease, with high mortality, is the most common extra-articular manifestation of rheumatoid arthritis.The etiology and treatment effect of rheumatoid arthritis associated interstitial lung disease remains unclear.This review summarizes the early diagnosis and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis associated interstitial lung disease to improve the prognosis.
Key words:
Rheumatoid arthritis; Interstitial lung disease; Early detection; Drugs
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
DeCure is a research and publication project, not medical advice and not a treatment. "DeCure for X" describes a research goal, not a claim that a cure exists. Backing a cure is a contribution to fund the research — it is not an investment, and confers no yield, royalty, equity or IP ownership. Papers are published open-access by the DeCure.ai DAO.
