Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is common. In people who have RA, the immune system attacks joints in the body. This results in pain and movement problems for patients, and it reduces their ability to function. About one in 100 people develop this disease in their lifetime. Indigenous people are more likely to develop RA.

Unfortunately, researchers don’t understand why people develop this very common and serious disease. People with RA develop markers in their blood called antibodies. Antibodies usually fight bacteria and viruses. However, in RA these antibodies are directed against a portion of a protein called citrulline.

We already know that the amount of citrullinated proteins is different in patients with RA compared to healthy people without RA. We suspect that the inflammation that occurs in RA may be triggered by citrullinated proteins. Also, we think that these differences in citrullination are likely to occur before the development of the disease.

Our research team wants to learn which citrullinated proteins are higher in people with RA. We also want to find out which citrullinated proteins are higher when individuals with RA start to develop their antibodies. This will help us discover new markers in the blood that will help find people who are at highest risk to develop RA. This will help future researchers develop treatments that prevents citrullination from happening, which may stop arthritis from developing in the first place.