Therapeutic intervention with inhibitors of co-stimulatory pathways in autoimmune disease

A Aruffo1, D Hollenbaugh

  • 1Immunology and Inflammation Drug Discovery, The Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Research Institute, Princeton, NJ 08543, USA. alejandro.aruffo@bms.com

Many humanized antibodies and fusion proteins targeting T-cell co-stimulatory molecules are now in late-stage clinical development (phase II, phase III) or have recently completed phase III clinical trials. Both Amevive, an LFA-3-Ig fusion protein targeting CD2, and Xanelim, a humanized anti-CD11a antibody, have shown efficacy in pivotal phase III trials in patients with plaque psoriasis. These new medicines are poised to enter clinical use in 2002.

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