Advantages of Collagen Antibody Induced Arthritis (CAIA) using ArthritoMab™ Antibody Cocktail

The ability to induce arthritis using an antibody cocktail to Collagen Type II (CII) provides an efficient protocol as an alternative to the lengthy CIA model. In the CIA model, collagen in adjuvant is administered causing the formation of autoantibodies to CII. After about 3 weeks, the antibody titer is sufficiently large enough to attack the collagen in the joints. The ArthritoMab™ Antibody cocktail contains 4 monoclonal antibodies to CII, essentially bypassing the initial 3 week induction period required in the CIA model.

Benefits of the CAIA model:

Time
The model is induced by administration of cocktail followed by an LPS boost. Disease symptoms are apparent within 24-48 hours with results obtained in as little as 10 days allowing the rapid progression of studies. The shortened study length reduces the facility requirements, administration periods and the amount of expensive compound and controls.

Synchronicity
Disease onset is synchronized simplifying the treatment schedules as well as allowing a more direct comparison between test groups in the same study.

Incidence
Disease incidence is nearly 100% potentially reducing the group size and allowing for more significant read-outs from individual studies.

Susceptibility
The CAIA model is not limited to CIA susceptible strains and can be expanded into a variety of transgenic strains.

Flexibility
The protocol can be altered for various study lengths, disease severity and disease pathology pathways. Extending the model to 18 days allows for a 6 day recovery phase, which can reveal the ability of a test item to promote arthritis resolution.