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Is spleen tyrosine kinase inhibition an effective therapy for patients with RA?

Nature Reviews Rheumatology volume 5, pages 130–131 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

Despite the success of biologic therapeutic agents that target cytokines and lymphocytes, clinical needs remain unmet in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The development of small-molecule inhibitors that can block critical immune signal-transduction pathways are of particular interest as novel therapies for RA. Spleen tyrosine kinase (SYK) subserves the function of Fc receptors and the B-cell receptor; as such, it is attractive as a potential therapeutic target. Weinblatt and colleagues recently performed a proof-of-concept study, which demonstrated that inhibition of SYK reduced RA disease activity and levels of disease-relevant biomarkers. Dose-limiting adverse effects include diarrhea, neutropenia and hypertension, which result from both target-dependent and off-target effects. This novel study provides the first evidence that SYK could be a useful therapeutic target in RA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. and IB McInnes is Professor of Experimental Medicine and Rheumatology and Head of the Division of Immunology, AJ Hueber is a Clinical Research Fellow in Rheumatology and Immunology, Infection and Inflammation, at the University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.,

    Axel J Hueber & Iain B McInnes

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  1. Axel J Hueber
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  2. Iain B McInnes
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Correspondence to Iain B McInnes.

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Competing interests

IB McInnes is a consultant for and has received grant/research support from Bristol-Myers Squibb, Roche, Schering-Plough and Wyeth, and has received speaker's honoraria from Schering-Plough.

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Hueber, A., McInnes, I. Is spleen tyrosine kinase inhibition an effective therapy for patients with RA?. Nat Rev Rheumatol 5, 130–131 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/ncprheum1025

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