Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis by oral administration of bovine tracheal type II collagen

Rheumatol Int. 2001 May;20(4):138-44. doi: 10.1007/s002960100099.

Abstract

We evaluated the efficacy and safety of orally administered bovine tracheal type II collagen (CGII) in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Twenty RA patients received 0.5 mg/day of CGII for 12 weeks. Eighteen of them had improvements in the clinical parameters studied (swollen and tender joint counts, 15-m walking time, duration of morning stiffness, and physician's global assessment of disease activity). Anti-CGII antibodies were positive in 57% and rheumatoid factor (RF) in 71% of the patients with a short history of RA ( < or =2 years), whereas only 23% of those with long histories (>2 years) presented autoantibodies to CGII and 38% had positive RF. After the treatment, four patients showed reduced RF levels and all those with detectable serum tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) experienced its return to normal or levels below those at study entry. Although a placebo effect cannot be discounted, the oral administration of bovine tracheal CGII induced clinical benefits in 90% of the patients, without the side effects usually associated with treatment. This is the first study showing that feeding CGII can induce reductions in RF and TNF-alpha. The data justify further controlled studies to assess the long-term efficacy of this treatment approach.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Administration, Oral
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Animals
  • Arthritis, Rheumatoid / diagnosis
  • Arthritis, Rheumatoid / drug therapy*
  • Cattle
  • Collagen / administration & dosage*
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Pain Measurement
  • Pilot Projects
  • Range of Motion, Articular
  • Severity of Illness Index
  • Trachea
  • Treatment Outcome

Substances

  • Collagen