A cheap B5 supplement eased psoriasis in a trial

A common nutritional supplement eased the symptoms of psoriasis in an early clinical trial, researchers in Beijing reported in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. Psoriasis, an autoimmune condition that leaves itchy, scaly patches on the knees and elbows, has no cure. The team found that pantethine, a vitamin B5 derivative sold widely to help lower cholesterol, limits the activity of dendritic cells, immune cells that help drive the inflammation behind the disease. The proof-of-concept trial treated 24 patients with ointment over 12 weeks. Half also received pantethine tablets, and that group showed better results, especially among those who started with high blood cholesterol. In mice, the supplement prevented psoriasis from developing at all. "Our investigator-initiated clinical trial demonstrated encouraging therapeutic efficacy of pantethine as an adjunctive therapy in psoriasis," said co-lead author Dr. Wei-Na Zhang. The pill was already sitting on pharmacy shelves, bought for an entirely different reason.