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Immunomodulatory
Immunotherapy or biological therapy is the treatment of disease by activating or suppressing the immune system. Immunotherapies designed to elicit or amplify an immune response are classified as ''activation immunotherapies,'' while immunotherapies that reduce or suppress are classified as '' suppression immunotherapies''. Immunotherapy is under preliminary research for its potential to treat various forms of cancer. Cell-based immunotherapies are effective for some cancers. Immune effector cells such as lymphocytes, macrophages, dendritic cells, natural killer cells, and cytotoxic T lymphocytes work together to defend the body against cancer by targeting abnormal antigens expressed on the surface of tumor cells. Vaccine-induced immunity to COVID-19 relies mostly on an immunomodulatory T cell response. Therapies such as granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), interferons, imiquimod and cellular membrane fractions from bacteria are licensed for medical use. Others includin ...
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Immunomodulatory Imide Drug
Immunomodulatory imide drugs (IMiDs) are a class of immunomodulatory drugs (drugs that adjust immune responses) containing an imide group. The IMiD class includes thalidomide and its analogues ( lenalidomide, pomalidomide, and iberdomide. These drugs may also be referred to as 'Cereblon modulators'. Cereblon (CRBN) is the protein targeted by this class of drugs. The name "IMiD" alludes to both "IMD" for "immunomodulatory drug" and the forms '' imide'', '' imido-'', '' imid-'', and '' imid''. The development of analogs of thalidomide was precipitated by the discovery of the anti-angiogenic and anti-inflammatory properties of the drug yielding a new way of fighting cancer as well as some inflammatory diseases after it had been banned in 1961. The problems with thalidomide included; teratogenic side effects, high incidence of other adverse reactions, poor solubility in water and poor absorption from the intestines. In 1998 thalidomide was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Adm ...
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Thalidomide
Thalidomide, sold under the brand names Contergan and Thalomid among others, is a medication used to treat a number of cancers (including multiple myeloma), graft-versus-host disease, and a number of skin conditions including complications of leprosy. While it has been used in a number of HIV-associated conditions, such use is associated with increased levels of the virus. It is taken by mouth. Common side effects include sleepiness, rash, and dizziness. Severe side effects include tumor lysis syndrome, blood clots, and peripheral neuropathy. Use in pregnancy may harm the fetus, including resulting in malformation of the limbs. In males who are taking the medication, contraception is essential if a partner could become pregnant. It is an immunomodulatory medication and works by a number of mechanisms, including stimulating T cells and decreasing TNF-α production. Thalidomide was first marketed in 1957 in West Germany, where it was available over the counter. When first r ...
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Cytokines
Cytokines are a broad and loose category of small proteins (~5–25 kDa) important in cell signaling. Cytokines are peptides and cannot cross the lipid bilayer of cells to enter the cytoplasm. Cytokines have been shown to be involved in autocrine, paracrine and endocrine signaling as immunomodulating agents. Cytokines include chemokines, interferons, interleukins, lymphokines, and tumour necrosis factors, but generally not hormones or growth factors (despite some overlap in the terminology). Cytokines are produced by a broad range of cells, including immune cells like macrophages, B lymphocytes, T lymphocytes and mast cells, as well as endothelial cells, fibroblasts, and various stromal cells; a given cytokine may be produced by more than one type of cell. They act through cell surface receptors and are especially important in the immune system; cytokines modulate the balance between humoral and cell-based immune responses, and they regulate the maturation, growth, and resp ...
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Lenalidomide
Lenalidomide, sold under the trade name Revlimid among others, is a medication used to treat multiple myeloma, smoldering myeloma, and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). For multiple myeloma, it is used after at least one other treatment and generally with dexamethasone. It is taken by mouth. Common side effects include diarrhea, itchiness, joint pain, fever, headache, and trouble sleeping. Severe side effects include low blood platelets, low white blood cells, and blood clots. Use during pregnancy may harm the fetus. The dose may need to be adjusted in people with kidney problems. It has a chemical structure similar to thalidomide but has a different mechanism of action. How it works is not entirely clear as of 2019. Lenalidomide was approved for medical use in the United States in 2005. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. Medical uses Multiple myeloma Lenalidomide is used to treat multiple myeloma. It is a more potent molecular analog of th ...
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Antimicrobial Peptides
Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), also called host defence peptides (HDPs) are part of the innate immune response found among all classes of life. Fundamental differences exist between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells that may represent targets for antimicrobial peptides. These peptides are potent, broad spectrum antibiotics which demonstrate potential as novel therapeutic agents. Antimicrobial peptides have been demonstrated to kill Gram negative and Gram positive bacteria, enveloped viruses, fungi and even transformed or cancerous cells. Unlike the majority of conventional antibiotics it appears that antimicrobial peptides frequently destabilize biological membranes, can form transmembrane channels, and may also have the ability to enhance immunity by functioning as immunomodulators. Structure Antimicrobial peptides are a unique and diverse group of molecules, which are divided into subgroups on the basis of their amino acid composition and structure. Antimicrobial peptides are g ...
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Glucan
A glucan is a polysaccharide derived from D-glucose, linked by glycosidic bonds. Glucans are noted in two forms: alpha glucans and beta glucans. Many beta-glucans are medically important. They represent a drug target for antifungal medications of the echinocandin class. Types The following are glucans (The α- and β- and numbers clarify the type of O-glycosidic bond and the specific carbons involved): Alpha * dextran, α-1,6-glucan with α-1,3-branches * floridean starch, α-1,4- and α-1,6-glucan * glycogen, α-1,4- and α-1,6-glucan * pullulan, α-1,4- and α-1,6-glucan * starch, a mixture of amylose and amylopectin, both α-1,4- and α-1,6-glucans Beta * cellulose, β-1,4-glucan * chrysolaminarin, β-1,3-glucan * curdlan, β-1,3-glucan * laminarin, β-1,3- and β-1,6-glucan * lentinan, a strictly purified β-1,6:β-1,3-glucan from ''Lentinus edodes'' * lichenin, β-1,3- and β-1,4-glucan * oat beta-glucan, β-1,3- and β-1,4-glucan * pleuran, β-1,3- and β-1,6-gluca ...
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CXCL7
Chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand 7 (CXCL7) is a human gene. The encoded protein, Chemokine (C-X-C motif) ligand is a small cytokine belonging to the CXC chemokine family. It is an isoform of Beta-Thromboglobulin or ''Pro-Platelet basic protein'' (PPBP). It is a protein that is released in large amounts from platelets following their activation. It stimulates various processes including mitogenesis, synthesis of extracellular matrix, glucose metabolism and synthesis of plasminogen activator Plasminogen activators are serine proteases that catalyze the activation of plasmin via proteolytic cleavage of its zymogen form plasminogen. Plasmin is an important factor in fibrinolysis, the breakdown of fibrin polymers formed during blood clotti .... References Further reading * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * External links * Cytokines {{gene-4-stub ...
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CCL26
Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 26 (CCL26) is a small cytokine belonging to the CC chemokine family that is also called Eotaxin-3, Macrophage inflammatory protein 4-alpha (MIP-4-alpha), Thymic stroma chemokine-1 (TSC-1), and IMAC. It is expressed by several tissues including heart, lung and ovary, and in endothelial cells that have been stimulated with the cytokine interleukin 4. CCL26 is chemotactic for eosinophils and basophils and elicits its effects by binding to the cell surface chemokine receptor CCR3. This gene for chemokine is located on human chromosome 7 Chromosome 7 is one of the 23 pairs of chromosomes in humans, who normally have two copies of this chromosome. Chromosome 7 spans about 159 million base pairs (the building material of DNA) and represents between 5 and 5.5 percent of the total D ....Hillier et al. The DNA sequence of human chromosome 7. Nature 424:157-164, 2003. References External links * * Cytokines {{gene-7-stub ...
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CCL3
Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 3 (CCL3) also known as macrophage inflammatory protein 1-alpha (MIP-1-alpha) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''CCL3'' gene. Function CCL3 is a cytokine belonging to the CC chemokine family that is involved in the acute inflammatory state in the recruitment and activation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes through binding to the receptors CCR1, CCR4 and CCR5. Sherry et al. (1988) demonstrated 2 protein components of MIP1, called by them alpha (CCL3, this protein) and beta (CCL4). CCL3 produces a monophasic fever of rapid onset whose magnitude is equal to or greater than that of fevers produced with either recombinant human tumor necrosis factor or recombinant human interleukin-1. However, in contrast to these two endogenous pyrogens, the fever induced by MIP-1 is not inhibited by the cyclooxygenase inhibitor ibuprofen and CCL3 may participate in the febrile response that is not mediated through prostaglandin synthesis and clinically ca ...
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Chemokines
Chemokines (), or chemotactic cytokines, are a family of small cytokines or signaling proteins secreted by cells that induce directional movement of leukocytes, as well as other cell types, including endothelial and epithelial cells. In addition to playing a major role in the activation of host immune responses, chemokines are important for biological processes, including morphogenesis and wound healing, as well as in the pathogenesis of diseases like cancers. Cytokine proteins are classified as chemokines according to behavior and structural characteristics. In addition to being known for mediating chemotaxis, chemokines are all approximately 8-10 kilodaltons in mass and have four cysteine residues in conserved locations that are key to forming their 3-dimensional shape. These proteins have historically been known under several other names including the ''SIS family of cytokines'', ''SIG family of cytokines'', ''SCY family of cytokines'', ''Platelet factor-4 superfamily'' or '' ...
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G-CSF
Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF or GCSF), also known as colony-stimulating factor 3 (CSF 3), is a glycoprotein that stimulates the bone marrow to produce granulocytes and stem cells and release them into the bloodstream. Functionally, it is a cytokine and hormone, a type of colony-stimulating factor, and is produced by a number of different tissues. The pharmaceutical analogs of naturally occurring G-CSF are called filgrastim and lenograstim. G-CSF also stimulates the survival, proliferation, differentiation, and function of neutrophil precursors and mature neutrophils. Biological function G-CSF is produced by endothelium, macrophages, and a number of other immune cells. The natural human glycoprotein exists in two forms, a 174- and 177-amino-acid-long protein of molecular weight 19,600 grams per mole. The more-abundant and more-active 174-amino acid form has been used in the development of pharmaceutical products by recombinant DNA (rDNA) technology. ;Whi ...
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Interferon
Interferons (IFNs, ) are a group of signaling proteins made and released by host cells in response to the presence of several viruses. In a typical scenario, a virus-infected cell will release interferons causing nearby cells to heighten their anti-viral defenses. IFNs belong to the large class of proteins known as cytokines, molecules used for communication between cells to trigger the protective defenses of the immune system that help eradicate pathogens. Interferons are named for their ability to "interfere" with viral replication by protecting cells from virus infections. However, virus-encoded genetic elements have the ability to antagonize the IFN response contributing to viral pathogenesis and viral diseases. IFNs also have various other functions: they activate immune cells, such as natural killer cells and macrophages, and they increase host defenses by up-regulating antigen presentation by virtue of increasing the expression of major histocompatibility complex (M ...
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