Anti-Inflammatory & Anti-Allergy Agents in Medicinal Chemistry (Formerly Current Medicinal Chemistry - Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Allergy Agents) - Volume 7, Issue 1, 2008

Nitric oxide (NO) is an important biological mediator and the exhaled form is mainly produced by the nose and paranasal sinuses. In the upper airways, NO has been suggested to involve in host defense, regulation of nasal airway flow and aerocrine messenger. It is now clear that many chronic sino-nasal diseases, including allergic rhinitis (AR), may alter the output of exhaled NO levels. AR is a chronic inflammatory disea Read More

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is considered to be multifactorial inflammatory diseases involving complex interactions between genetic and environmental influences. Inflammatory reactions in AR are regulated by many cytokines. The impact of genetic factors on the pathogenesis of AR is currently an area of intense investigation. Various loci and candidate genes have been suggested to underlie allergy. Many or all are still controversia Read More

Allergic rhinitis (AR) is caused by an immediate type hypersensitivity reaction in sensitized subjects after exposure to airborn allergens. The interaction of the allergen with a specific IgE antibody attached to the nasal mast cells leads to the local release of vasoactive and inflammatory mediators such as histamine, leukotriene C4 and prostaglandin D2. These mediators cause the nasal allergic symptoms complex of rhin Read More

Leukotrienes (LT) are the inflammatory mediators that have an important role in inflammatory diseases such as allergic rhinitis and asthma. The leukotrienes that contain cystein, cysteinyl leukotrienes (Cys LTs), are LTC4, LTD4 and LTE4. They are synthesized from arachidonic acid by 5-lipooxygenase pathway and eosinophils and mast cells can produce large amounts of Cys LTs from an endogenous pool of arachidonic a Read More

The goal of treatment in allergic rhinitis (AR) is to provide effective prevention of or relief from allergic rhinitis symptoms without adversely affecting daily activities or cognitive performance. Effective treatment of allergic rhinitis usually requires an integrated regimen that combines allergen avoidance measures, pharmacotherapy and possible specific- allergen immunotherapy. Oral corticosteroids are very effective Read More

Omalizumab is recently developed monoclonal anti-IgE antibody. Clinical trials have demonstrated its efficacy in patients with moderate-to-severe and severe or poorly controlled allergic asthma, in patients with seasonal and perennial allergic disease and in subjects with concomitant asthma and allergic rhinitis. Patients with more severe asthma appear to obtain the greatest benefit from omalizumab therapy. Omalizumab is Read More

Allergic rhinitis is a common immun-mediated inflammatory condition of the nasal mucosa. AR occurs because of the cross linking of IgE by allergens within the upper respiratory tract. Allergy is now understood to be a systemic inflammatory disease. The symptoms caused by this allergic inflammation include sneezing, rhinorrhea, nasal pruritus, and nasal congestion; allergic conjunctivitis often accompanies AR. The intera Read More

Allergic rhinitis is an inflammatory disease of nasal mucosa mediated by IgE-associated response to indoor and outdoor environmental allergens. The treatment of allergic rhinitis involves three main categories: avoidance of allergen, pharmacologic management and immunotherapy. The first therapeutic approach in allergic rhinitis is prevention, which is done by avoidance of causal allergens. This helps reduce the symptoms a Read More

Contact hypersensitivity (CHS) is an antigen-specific response elicited by exposure to certain low-molecularweight compounds termed haptens, and is the disease often seen clinically. CHS has also been used as a useful model to assess antigen-specific and T cell-dependent immune response. A wide variety of cells are thought to be involved in the pathogenesis of CHS. Keratinocytes and T cells are regarded as important factors, Read More

The most common allergic diseases, such as rhinitis, asthma, and atopic dermatitis, are caused by inflammation induced by an immune response to environmental allergens, driven by regulatory cells such as antigen presenting cells and T lymphocytes with their secreted products of multiple activities - cytokines and chemokines - and sustained by effector cells such as mast cells, basophils, and eosinophils. Allergen immunoth Read More