TNF alfa inhibitors

Other names: tnf inhibitors, tnf-alpha inhibitors, tumor necrosis factor inhibitors

What are TNF alfa inhibitors?

TNF-alfa (alpha) inhibitors (TNF-alpha) are a group of medicines that suppress the body’s natural response to tumor necrosis factor (TNF), a protein produced by white blood cells that is involved in early inflammatory events.

TNF-alfa inhibitors treat a wide range of inflammatory conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis, juvenile arthritis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, ankylosing spondylitis, and psoriasis.

The TNF inhibitors approved by the FDA are infliximab, adalimumab, etanercept, golimumab, and certrolizumab. These agents can be used by themselves or in combination with other medications such as prednisone, methotrexate, hydroxychloroquine, leflunomide or sulfasalazine.

Briefly, anti-TNF-α treatment acts in the immune system as follows: (a) downregulating pro-inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, acute phase proteins and adhesion molecules expression, (b) increasing circulating regulatory T cells and (c) reducing the migration of inflammatory cells from blood to the inflamed tissue.

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) is a cytokine that has pleiotropic effects on various cell types. It has been identified as a major regulator of inflammatory responses and is known to be involved in the pathogenesis of some inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.

Apoptosis of inflammatory immune cells as consequence of anti-TNF treatment has been discussed as a major mechanism of action explaining the fast onset of therapeutic effects upon successful therapy. Thus, the induced cell death of monocytes/macrophages or T cells has been analyzed.

IL-17 Inhibitors and Their Role in Inflammatory Bowel Disease. The best-known anti-IL-17 monoclonal antibodies are Secukinumab (SEC), Ixekizumab (IXE), and brodalumab (BROD), which are widely used in the treatment of IBD for psoriasis and ankylosing spondylitis.