Pathobiology of Early Arthritis Cohort (PEAC) MRC: Home

The Pathobiology of Early Arthritis Cohort (PEAC) has been established through the contribution of a consortium of independent, national centres of excellence. The specific aims of this project are to create an extensively phenotyped cohort of patients with early inflammatory arthritis with linked, detailed pathobiological data.

This study will generate a unique bio-medical resource with high-density data including gene expression profiling, proteomics, metabonomics, genotyping, serum and synovial fluid cyotokine & chemokine analysis, biological tissue characterisation, state-of-the-art ultrasound imaging, and detailed clinical phenotyping. This resource will therefore enable assessment of the role of a spectrum of molecular and cellular pathways that may be involved in disease susceptibility, heterogeneity and treatment response.

In this context, this resource will represent a valuable tool in the identification and characterization of early biomarkers of disease development and progression and, may elucidate key pathways involved in perpetuation or resolution of inflammation.

This in turn will facilitate precise and predictive biomarker lead therapeutic intervention and, provide a capacity to conduct early proof of concept studies as well as a capacity to engage therapeutic strategies with the long-term aim of induction of remission.