Abatacept News and Research

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Abatacept (marketed as Orencia) is a fusion protein composed of an immunoglobulin fused to the extracellular domain of CTLA-4, a molecule capable of binding B7. Abatacept is a selective costimulation modulator as it inhibits the costimulation of T cells. It was developed by Bristol-Myers-Squibb and is licensed in the United States for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in the case of inadequate response to anti-TNFa therapy.

EULAR 2026 highlights rising comorbidity risks in rheumatic disease

People with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMD) are at risk of a number of comorbidities, from cardiovascular diseases to cognitive impairment and fractures.

4 Jun 2026

New therapies could help type 1 diabetes care move beyond insulin alone

Disease-modifying therapies for type 1 diabetes are beginning to move care beyond insulin replacement by targeting immune dysregulation, beta-cell stress, and preservation of endogenous beta-cell function. Teplizumab marks a major clinical milestone, but the review emphasizes that durable metabolic remission will likely require earlier screening, better patient selection, and sequential or combination therapies.

18 May 2026

Early treatment delays rheumatoid arthritis onset in high-risk individuals

Treating people who are at high risk of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can delay the onset of the disease for several years, with benefits also continuing well after treatment has stopped.

20 Jan 2026

Scientists outline how future therapies could change type 1 diabetes care

Researchers writing in The Lancet review breakthroughs in type 1 diabetes treatment, from immunotherapies that delay onset to stem-cell β-cell replacement and automated insulin delivery. They stress that equitable access, validated surrogate endpoints, and scalable technologies are crucial for lasting impact.

24 Sep 2025

Nanoparticles could slow rheumatoid arthritis progression and reduce flare severity

As a chronic condition, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can't be cured, so treatment focuses on managing the disease and controlling its progression. Although current treatments help control RA symptoms in most people, they cannot prevent the onset of RA or painful flare-ups.

6 Aug 2025

Researchers uncover immune mechanism behind myocarditis from cancer immunotherapy

Some patients being treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors, a type of cancer immunotherapy, develop a dangerous form of heart inflammation called myocarditis.

6 Nov 2024

UCL scientists receive £997,000 from the Type 1 Diabetes Grand Challenge

Scientists at the UCL Institute of Immunity & Transplantation (IIT) are part of a team to receive £997,000 from the Type 1 Diabetes Grand Challenge, a new partnership involving The Steve Morgan Foundation, Diabetes UK and JDRF.

19 Dec 2023

Advancements in food allergy research promise improved diagnosis and treatment options

A review in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology discusses the global trends in food allergy prevalence, with stabilization in developed regions and an increase in developing countries, alongside advancements in understanding the mechanisms, diagnosis, and treatment of food allergies.

13 Dec 2023

Clinical study launched to test the benefits of immune modulation for hospitalized COVID-19 patients

A clinical trial has launched to test whether early intensive immune modulation for hospitalized COVID-19 patients with relatively mild illness is beneficial.

22 Sep 2023

Two anti-inflammatory drugs reduce deaths in severe COVID-19 patients

Two anti-inflammatory drugs, abatacept and infliximab, reduced deaths among patients hospitalized with severe COVID-19, according to a national study led by Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. William G. Powderly, MD, (right) who led the large clinical trial, discusses patient conditions with Maanasi Samant, MD, in the intensive care unit at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, one of the major trial sites, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

10 Jul 2023

Research suggests people on rheumatoid arthritis drugs show weaker response to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines

Researchers conducted a comparative study among a cohort of individuals on rheumatoid arthritis (RA) therapies vis-à-vis healthy controls to assess their responses to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccines.

9 Jan 2023

Immune modulator drugs improved clinical status, reduced deaths among patients hospitalized with COVID-19

A large randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial led by the National Institutes of Health shows that treating adults hospitalized with COVID-19 with infliximab or abatacept - drugs widely used to treat certain autoimmune diseases - did not significantly shorten time to recovery but did substantially improve clinical status and reduce deaths.

2 Jun 2022

New drug combination may prevent GvHD after stem cell transplantation for blood cancers

A drug combination can safely prevent transplanted stem cells, known as a graft, from attacking the recipient's body, allowing them to develop into healthy new blood and immune cells, a new study shows.

14 Dec 2021

Factors contributing to a weak antibody response to the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine

A new study discusses risk factors for the failure of seroconversion following full vaccination with the COVID-19 Pfizer vaccine.

18 Oct 2021

Baseline use of DMARDs linked with COVID-19 severity in rheumatoid arthritis patients

Due to sample size limitations, previous studies of DMARD use and COVID-19 outcomes have combined several different rheumatic diseases and medications, and investigated a single outcome- for example, the risk of hospitalization.

18 Jun 2021

Arthritis drug may be effective in treating immunotherapy-related heart complication

A drug typically prescribed for rheumatoid arthritis may also be effective in treating a rare but potentially deadly heart complication some cancer patients experience after taking immunotherapies, according to a study published in Cancer Discovery and co-led by investigators at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

21 Dec 2020

NIH launches adaptive Phase 3 clinical trial to test immune modulator drugs in COVID-19 patients

The National Institutes of Health has launched an adaptive Phase 3 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of three immune modulator drugs in hospitalized adults with COVID-19.

16 Oct 2020

New biomarker may help identify patients at risk for graft-versus-host disease after stem cell transplants

A recent report published in Science Translational Medicine by MUSC Hollings Cancer Center investigator Sophie Paczesny, M.D., Ph.D., sheds light on immune cell biomarkers that may reveal which patients are most at risk for graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), a life-threatening condition that can arise after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) for treatment of liquid cancers such as leukemia.

7 Oct 2020

New biomarkers may identify Type 1 diabetes patients who could benefit from immunotherapy

Scientists at UCL have discovered new biomarkers, which may identify those people with Type 1 diabetes who would benefit from the immunotherapy drug Abatacept, a finding which could eventually help thousands manage the disease more effectively.

3 Aug 2020

A major step toward preventing GvHD in patients receiving bone marrow transplants

A drug used for rheumatoid arthritis has moved a step closer to FDA approval for a desperately needed new use.

4 Dec 2019