Resiquimod (R-848) is a drug that acts as an immune response modifier, and has
antiviral
Antiviral drugs are a class of medication used for treating viral infections. Most antivirals target specific viruses, while a broad-spectrum antiviral is effective against a wide range of viruses. Unlike most antibiotics, antiviral drugs do no ...
and
antitumour activity. It is used as a
topical
A topical medication is a medication that is applied to a particular place on or in the body. Most often topical medication means application to body surfaces such as the skin or mucous membranes to treat ailments via a large range of classes ...
gel in the treatment of skin lesions
such as those caused by the
herpes simplex virus
Herpes simplex virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2), also known by their taxonomical names ''Human alphaherpesvirus 1'' and '' Human alphaherpesvirus 2'', are two members of the human ''Herpesviridae'' family, a set of viruses that produce viral inf ...
and
cutaneous T cell lymphoma,
and as an adjuvant to increase the effectiveness of
vaccine
A vaccine is a biological Dosage form, preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease, infectious or cancer, malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verifie ...
s.
In an
animal disease model, systemic administration of resiquimod-loaded nanoparticles has been shown to improve response rates to
cancer immunotherapy
Cancer immunotherapy (sometimes called immuno-oncology) is the stimulation of the immune system to treat cancer, improving on the immune system's natural ability to fight the disease. It is an application of the fundamental research of cancer im ...
with a
checkpoint inhibitor
Checkpoint inhibitor therapy is a form of cancer immunotherapy. The therapy targets immune checkpoints, key regulators of the immune system that when stimulated can dampen the immune response to an immunologic stimulus. Some cancers can protect the ...
through stimulation of tumor-associated macrophages. It has several mechanisms of action, being both an
agonist
An agonist is a chemical that activates a receptor to produce a biological response. Receptors are cellular proteins whose activation causes the cell to modify what it is currently doing. In contrast, an antagonist blocks the action of the ago ...
for
toll-like receptor 7 and
8,
and an upregulator of the
opioid growth factor receptor.
On 28 April 2016, orphan designation (EU/3/16/1653) was granted by the European Commission to Galderma R&D, France for resiquimod to be used in the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.
[http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Orphan_designation/2016/05/WC500207498.pdf ]
See also
*
Imiquimod
Imiquimod, sold under the brand name Aldara among others, is a medication that acts as an immune response modifier that is used to treat genital warts, superficial basal cell carcinoma, and actinic keratosis. Scientists at 3M's pharmaceuticals ...
*
Gardiquimod
Gardiquimod is an experimental drug which acts selectively at both mouse and human forms of toll-like receptor 7 (TLR7). It functions as an immune response modifier. The core structure is 1''H''-imidazo ,5-cuinoline, as found in related drugs su ...
References
Anti-herpes virus drugs
Antineoplastic drugs
Imidazoquinolines
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