Expert opinion on biological therapy
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Sepsis leads to an overwhelming inflammatory response of the host and is usually accompanied by well-known clinical symptoms (fever, tachycardia, leukocytosis, and so on) and the accompanying systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS). Accordingly, most efforts to develop treatment strategies for sepsis have focused on those designed to counteract overactivation of the inflammatory system. ⋯ Recombinant activated protein C (APC) represents the first treatment that has led to restricted approval for use in sepsis in the USA and worldwide. This article reviews approaches to anti-inflammatory treatment in sepsis and provides an outlook into ongoing clinical trials as well as new treatments that have not yet been evaluated in the clinical setting.
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Expert Opin Biol Ther · Apr 2003
ReviewTherapy of allergic bronchial asthma with omalizumab - an anti-IgE monoclonal antibody.
The immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibody plays a central role in the allergic immune responses, such as those which characterise allergic bronchial asthma. The ability to reduce circulating IgE by using anti-IgE antibodies represents a novel therapeutic approach for IgE-mediated allergic diseases. Omalizumab (rhuMAb-E25/Xolair Genentech, USA/Tanox, Inc., USA/Novartis Pharma AG, Switzerland) is a non-anaphylactogen humanised murine monoclonal antibody which binds to circulating IgE. ⋯ It reduces the frequency of asthma exacerbations and the need for inhaled corticosteroids (ICSs), and improves asthma symptoms, lung function and quality of life. The anti-IgE approach to asthma treatment has a number of further potential advantages, such as the treatment of other concomitant atopic diseases (allergic conjunctivitis and rhinitis, atopic dermatitis and food allergy), regardless of the type of allergic sensitisation (seasonal or perennial). On the basis of several studies, omalizumab is likely to provide a new strategy for treating atopic asthma.
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Expert Opin Biol Ther · Aug 2002
ReviewDrotrecogin alfa: a new approach in the treatment of severe sepsis.
Severe sepsis is a common and frequently fatal condition. Evidence showing a link between the coagulation system and the inflammatory response to sepsis led to the development of drotrecogin alfa (activated) as an agent in the treatment of sepsis. ⋯ Although associated with an increased risk of bleeding, this is usually procedure-related rather than spontaneous. Although costly, this is a drug that effectively reduces mortality rates in patients with severe sepsis.
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Expert Opin Biol Ther · Aug 2002
ReviewCancer-testis antigens: promising targets for antigen directed antineoplastic immunotherapy.
During the last decade, the aberrant expression of normal testicular proteins in neoplastically transformed cells became common knowledge. Cancer-testis antigens (CTAs) represent a novel family of immunogenic proteins. The genes MAGE, BAGE, GAGE, LAGE and NY-ESO-1 code for antigens that are recognised on various neoplastically transformed cells by autologous, cytolytic CD8 ( + ) T lymphocytes. ⋯ The identification of neoplasm-associated markers recognised by cellular or humoral effectors of the immune system has opened new perspectives for antigen directed, individualised antineoplastic immunotherapy. In preparation for this new era of targeted immunotherapy, a number of neoplasm-associated antigen families have been identified as targets for CD8+, cytolytic T lymphocytes in vitro and in vivo : (1) CTAs expressed in various neoplasms and in normal testis, restricted to male germ cells; (2) melanocyte differentiation antigens; (3) point mutations of normal genes; (4) antigens overexpressed in neoplastic tissues; and (5) viral antigens. Immunotherapeutic protocols directed against the CTAs have already been initiated to analyse the induction of antigen-specific cellular and humoral immune responses in vivo.
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Expert Opin Biol Ther · Jan 2002
The 32nd Annual Meeting of German Society of Immunology. 26 - 29 September 2001.
The 32nd Annual Meeting of German Society of Immunology (DGfi) was held in Dresden on 26 - 29 September 2001. The philosophy of the meeting was 'to throw some light on the progress that had been made in transferring basic immunological research into clinical application'. ⋯ The organisers invited several distinguished speakers from USA but many of them did not come to Dresden due to the tragic events that occurred in America on September 11th. Here we present meeting highlights, which were mostly devoted to therapeutic aspects of immunology.