Posted 5/28/2008

Research may lead to development of therapeutic alternatives

An Arnold School researcher has been awarded $50,000 to study a novel mechanism into the cause of psoriasis.

The one-year grant from the National Psoriasis Foundation Board of Trustees was presented to Dr. Maria-Eugenia Ariza, a research assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences.

Maria-Eugenia Ariza

Ariza said psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with a relapsing course over a patient’s lifetime. The disease commonly causes red scaly patches to appear on the skin. According to the National Institutes of Health, as many as 7.5 million Americans have psoriasis.

The impact of psoriatic lesions on a patient’s appearance can contribute to stress and depression. Additionally they can increase the risk of a person developing other diseases such as arthritis and myocardial infarction.

Ariza said there are several treatments for psoriasis currently in use but they tend to suppress the body’s immune response which may increase the risk of infections, cancer, organ toxicity and autoimmune responses.

Ariza’s research will focus on the role of HERV-K encoded dUTPase in the immune dysregulation associated with psoriasis. The information obtained from this study may lead to the development of new therapeutic alternatives and potentially improve the quality of life of psoriasis patients.

Funding for Ariza’s grant was made possible in part by a special donation in honor of and Dr. Phillip Frost and Dr. Gerald Weinstein, who established the therapeutic action of methotrexate for the treatment of psoriasis.

Methotrexate has long been used to treat severe cases of psoriasis in adults.

Ariza earned her doctorate from Ohio State University. She joined the USC faculty in 2006.