Biologic Drugs in Asthma Treatment
Development of the new antiasthmatic drugs is directed above all in the synthesis of theinhibitors of the proinflammatory cytokines and IgE antibodies. Several biologic drugs are tested for this purpose; most common of them are monoclonal antibodies or modified receptors. Experiments were also done with antiinflammatory cytokines, chemokine inhibitors, antilymphocytic antibodies, cell adhesion blockers and CpG oligonucleotides. The most promising drugs are those directed against interleukines IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, cytokine TNFa and IgE immunoglobulin. Humanized monoclonal antibody directed against immunoglobulin E binding site is the only biologic drug which is already used in the asthma treatment. Better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of asthma leads to the identification of the new therapeutic targets.