This 'caterpillar fungus' may help treat osteoarthritis
21 March, 2019
A parasitic fungus that infects caterpillars and various other insects may hold the key to better treatments for osteoarthritis, a condition characterized by pain and stiffness in a person's joints. This, at least, is what new research from the United Kingdom suggests.
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis, and more than 30 million adults in the United States have it, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
This is a chronic condition, and while it is currently incurable, treatments can address some of the symptoms.
A person with osteoarthritis may benefit from taking anti-inflammatory drugs, undergoing physical therapy, and making some lifestyle changes. These interventions can help reduce pain and inflammation and improve a person's physical flexibility.
Now, researchers from the University of Nottingham in the UK have turned to a parasitic fungus that, they believe, could lead to new and better treatments for osteoarthritis.
The fungus — called Cordyceps militaris — colonizes the caterpillars of Haepialus moths, as well as other insects. Traditionally, and according to some research, C. militaris can bring many health benefits, including by acting as an anti-inflammatory.
The University of Nottingham researchers have focused, specifically, on the potential benefits of cordycepin, a compound derived from this fungus, which, they say, has a unique anti-inflammatory effect that makes it an important candidate in the treatment of osteoarthritis.
"The natural compound cordycepin is derived from a caterpillar fungus which is famous in the Far East for its medicinal properties," explains the study's lead author, associate professor Cornelia de Moor, Ph.D.
In the new research — the results of which appear in the journal Scientific Reports — de Moor and colleagues studied the effects of cordycepin in mouse and rat models of osteoarthritis and found that it can both reduce pain and stop the condition from progressing.
"Intriguingly," the researcher adds, "[the compound] does this by a different mechanism than any other known anti-inflammatory painkiller," which, she contends, "means that medicines derived from cordycepin may help patients for whom other treatments have failed."
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