Recent developments in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis with targeted biological agents

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis RA is a chronic systemic autoimmune inflammatory disease characterised by progressive joint damage. The pathophysiological processes involved in inflammatory reactions such as occur in RA and during infections have now been delineated, providing a scientific rationale for the use of biological and/or chemical entities targeted at specific sites of the inflammatory cascade in order to modulate inflammation. Currently available therapies for RA, such as myocrisin and sulfasalazine, were developed empirically without much regard for the basic physiological mechanisms of inflammation, and are not always effective at controlling the disease. The majority of the novel agents being developed for the treatment of RA are biological. However, their clinical effects have been transient, necessitating repeated treatments, many have to be administered parenterally, production costs are very high and some patients have developed antiglobulin responses. Consequently, chemical entities that can be ta...