Aptamers Against Pro- and Anti-Inflammatory Cytokines: A Review

Inflammatory disorders result from continuous inflammation in injured sites. Many molecules are involved in this process; the inhibition of which could prevent the inflammation. Chemokines are a group of these biological mediators which are categorized into pro-, anti-, and pro-/anti-inflammatory. Thus, targeting these essential molecules can be an effective way for prevention and control of inflammatory diseases. Various therapeutic agents have been developed for primary and secondary prevention of these disorders, but each of them has its own limitations. Aptamers, as novel therapeutic agents, are a new generation of drugs which could replace other medications even antibodies. Aptamer can bind to its target molecule to trap it and prohibit its function. Among large group of inflammatory cytokines, only 11 aptamers have been selected either against cytokines or their related receptors. These cytokines include interleukin (IL)-2, IL-6, IL-10, IL-11, IL-17, IL-32, TGF-β, TNF-α, IFN-γ, CCL2, and IP-10. Most of the isolated aptamers are against pro-inflammatory or dual function cytokines, and it seems that they could be used for diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of the related inflammatory diseases. Most of the aptamers have been tested in vitro, but so far, none of them has been approved for in vivo use. Given a vast number of inflammatory cytokines, more aptamers against this group of biological molecules will be selected in the near future. The available aptamers will also be tested in clinical trials. Therefore, a significant improvement is expected for the prevention and control of inflammatory disorders.