Interferon alfa

Interferon alfa

Clinical data
AHFS/Drugs.com	International Drug Names
Pregnancy cat.	C(US)
Legal status	?
Routes	Subcutaneous, intramuscular
Identifiers
ATC code	L03AB01
Chemical data
Formula	?
N(what is this?)  alfa (verify)

Interferon alfa (INN, or HuIFN-alpha-Le, trade name Multiferon) is a natural interferon alpha (IFN-α) which is obtained from the leukocyte fraction of human blood following induction with Sendai virus. Interferon alfa contains several naturally occurring IFN-α subtypes and is purified by affinity chromatography.

Composition

Interferon alfa contains a mixture of several proteins all with structural, serological and functional properties typical for natural interferon alpha (IFN α). The major subtypes identified are: IFN-α1 -α2, -α8, -α10, -α14 and -α21; IFN-α2 and IFN-α14 are glycosylated. The IFN-α content is expressed in international units per ml and the drug product is formulated in isotonic phosphate buffer solution (pH 7.2) supplemented with human albumin, 1.5 mg/ml. The albumin used is a medicinal product, which is approved in several countries, indicated for subcutane injection therapy.

Pharmacology

Summary of differences between IFN subtypes

IFN-α8 enhances the proliferation of human B cells as well as being able to activate natural killer NK cells.

The subtypes α10 and α2 along with α8 are the best NK cell activators.

Subtypes α21 and α2 enhance the expression of IFN-gamma-inducible protein-10 (IP-10) in dendritic cells. Activated dendritic cells initiate immune responses and the expression of IP-10, a chemokine which promotes a Th1 inflammatory response.

IFN-α1 causes increased HLA-II expression and can directly inhibit tumour cell growth in vitro, but is a poor activator of NK cells, has poor anti-viral activity, does not induce B cell proliferation and does not enhance HLA-I or tumour antigen expression. Despite its apparent inactivity, it is used clinically in the treatment of metastatic renal carcinoma, with a reported lower toxicity than the recombinant IFN-α2.

Overall, IFN-α has a general inflammatory action which skews the immune response towards a Th1 profile.

Subtype α2 increased the expression of HLA-I molecules which correlate with IFN-α mediated activation of memory CD8 cells and increased cytolytic action against virally infected cells and tumour cells via cytotoxic CD8 cells.

References

This antineoplastic or immunomodulatory drug article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.v · Categories: Immunomodulating drugs Antineoplastic and immunomodulating drug stubs Wikimedia Foundation. 2010. Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР? Multifaith Works Multifocal motor neuropathy Look at other dictionaries: Interferon alfa-2b — drugbox IUPAC name = N/A width = CAS number = ATC prefix = L03 ATC suffix = AB05 ATC supplemental = PubChem = DrugBank = chemical formula = molecular weight = bioavailability = protein bound = metabolism = elimination half life = pregnancy US = C …   Wikipedia interferon alfa-n3 — a highly purified mixture of natural human interferon proteins, manufactured from pooled human leukocytes that have been induced to produce interferon alfa n3, that acts as a biologic response modifier; used in the treatment of condylomata… …   Medical dictionary interferón alfa-2b recombinante — Fármaco antineoplásico parenteral similar al interferón alfa 2a recombinante. Diccionario Mosby Medicina, Enfermería y Ciencias de la Salud, Ediciones Hancourt, S.A. 1999 …   Diccionario médico interferón alfa-2a recombinante — Fármaco antineoplásico parenteral que se administra en el tratamiento de la leucemia de células peludas. Diccionario Mosby Medicina, Enfermería y Ciencias de la Salud, Ediciones Hancourt, S.A. 1999 …   Diccionario médico interferon alfa — interferon al·fa al fə n alpha interferon produced by recombinant DNA technology …   Medical dictionary interferon alfa-2a — a synthetic form of interferon α produced by recombinant technology that acts as a biological response modifier, used as an antineoplastic in the treatment of hairy cell leukemia and AIDS related Kaposi sarcoma; administered intramuscularly… …   Medical dictionary interferon alfa-2b — a synthetic form of interferon α produced by recombinant technology that acts as a biologic response modifier, used in the treatment of condylomata acuminata, hepatitis B, and chronic hepatitis C and as an antineoplastic in the treatment of… …   Medical dictionary interferon-alfa — i. α …   Medical dictionary Interferon — A naturally occurring substance that interferes with the ability of viruses to reproduce. Interferon also boosts the immune system. There are a number of different interferons. They fall into three main classes : alpha, beta, and gamma. All are… …   Medical dictionary Interferón — El interferón es una proteína producida naturalmente por el sistema inmunitario de la mayoría de los animales como respuesta a agentes externos, tales como virus y células cancerígenas. El interferón pertenece a la clase de las glicoproteínas… …   Wikipedia Español 18+ © Academic, 2000-2024 Contact us: Technical Support, Advertising Dictionaries export, created on PHP, Joomla, Drupal, WordPress, MODx. Mark and share Search through all dictionaries Translate… Search Internet Share the article and excerpts Direct link … Do a right-click on the link above and select “Copy Link”