INTRODUCTION Immunosuppressants are used ubiquitously post-liver transplantation to prevent allograft rejection. However their effects on hepatocytes are unknown. Experimental data from non-liver cells indicate that immunosuppressants may promote cell death thereby driving an inflammatory response that promotes fibrosis and raises concerns that a similar effect may occur within the liver. We ev...

Immunoglobulin A (IgA) nephropathy is a worldwide disease that causes end-stage kidney disease (ESRD) in up to 15-20% of affected patients within 10 years from the apparent onset of disease and in up to 30-40% of individuals within 20 years from diagnosis. No specific treatment has been established and there is wide variation in current practice. This systematic review evaluates the use of immu...

Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the joints. The hallmark of RA is persisting inflammation in diarthrodial joints with infiltration of leukocytes, thickening of the synovial lining layer and synovial pannus formation. The therapeutic aim for RA patients is to alleviate the symptoms, slow the disease progression and optimise the quality of life. In recent years the ...

1. I n t r o d u c t i o n ‘Immunosuppressive agents’ are precisely what their name implies: agents tha t weaken or abolish the immunological response. The term itself promises more than any agent has in fact achieved. Strictly speaking, an immunosuppressive drug or treatm ent should be one th a t inhibits the immune response and no other. A central theme of this lecture is tha t only antilymph...

We have studied the effects of various immunosuppressive drugs on the growth of human-derived T (MOLT-4) and B (MGL-8) lymphoblasts. In addition, we have examined whether the lymphotoxic effect of any of these drugs could be attributed to inhibition of either adenosine deaminase (ADA) or purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP). Results indicated that 1-beta-D-arabinofuranosylcytosine (Ara-C), met...

The first successful kidney transplantation between monozygotic identical twins did not require any immunosuppressive drugs. Clinical application of azathioprine and glucocorticosteroids allowed the transfer of organs between genetically disparate donors and recipients. Transplantation is now the standard of care, a life-saving procedure for patients with failed organs. Progress in our understa...

The role of liquid chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (LC-MS) techniques in routine therapeutic drug monitoring activity is becoming increasingly important. This paper reviews LC-MS methods published in the last few years for certain classes of drugs subject to therapeutic drug monitoring: immunosuppressants, antifungal drugs, antiretroviral drugs, antidepressants and antipsychotics....

Prodigiosins (PrGs) are a family of promising therapeutic molecules, isolated mostly from Gram-negative bacteria and characterized by a common pyrryldipyrrylmethene structure with varying side chains. They show a broad spectrum of activities such as anti-microbial, anti-malarial, anti-cancer and immunosuppressive. PrGs are attracting increasing attention due to the ongoing research for less tox...

Recent developments in medicine have given us a better insight into a group of disorders known as autoimmune diseases. In particular, advances have occurred in our understanding of the Autoimmune Inner Ear Disease (AIED). In this article, the authors review the different postulated theories in the pathogenesis of this disease. The clinical presentation, the available para-clinical diagnostic to...

1 Although the precise pathogenic mechanisms of uveitis remain unknown, cytokines, chemokines and soluble adhesion molecules appear to play a major role in uveitis. They influence the communications between various cell types and alter vascular endothelial properties. Several recent studies have disclosed the beneficial role of aqueous humor samples for investigating involved molecular targets ...