Treatment of psychiatric conditions

Abstract

The number of acne lesions in a human subject is reduced by administering to the subject a pharmaceutical composition that includes a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier and a therapeutically effective amount of an agent that selectively binds IL-1α. Anxiety and other psychiatric conditions are also improved with this treatment.

What is claimed is: 
     
       What is claimed is: 
     
     
         1 . A method of treating skin inflammation in a human subject by administering to the subject a pharmaceutical composition comprising a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier and an amount of an agent that specifically binds IL-1α effective to reduce a symptom of skin inflammation in the subject. 
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the agent is that specifically binds IL-1α is an anti-IL-1α antibody. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the anti-IL-1α antibody is a monoclonal antibody. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the monoclonal antibody is an IgG1. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the monoclonal antibody comprises at least one of complementarity determining regions of MABp1. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5 , wherein the monoclonal antibody comprises all of the complementarity determining regions of MABp1. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 6 , wherein the monoclonal antibody is MABp1. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the Ka of the antibody is at least 1×10 9 M −1 . 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the pharmaceutical composition is administered to the subject parenterally, subcutaneously, intravenously, intramuscularly, intraperitoneally or intradermally. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the dose of the anti-IL-1α antibody is about 0.1 to 5 mg/kg body weight. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the anti-IL-1α antibody is administered semi-weekly, weekly, bi-weekly, tri-weekly, semi-monthly, once every three weeks, monthly or bi-monthly. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the symptom of skin inflammation is redness, swelling, leukocyte infiltration, lesion development, or lesion number. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the pharmaceutical composition reduces the symptom by at least about 10%. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein administration of the pharmaceutical composition reduces the number or size of lesions, redness, and/or itchiness. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the skin inflammation is associated with rosacea, eczema, psoriasis, xerosis, dermatitis, acne, pyoderma gangrenosum, urticaria, lichenoid disorders, bullous diseases including bullous pemphigoid, cutaneous vasculitis, or granulomatous skin diseases. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the skin inflammation is associated with pyoderma gangrenosum.