Eotaxin and asthma.
Eotaxin is a small protein that is produced in the lungs of asthmatic patients and is a potent chemoattractant for eosinophils. Eotaxin, a CC chemokine, stimulates the migration of eosinophils from the small blood vessels in the lungs by acting on the CC chemokine receptor CCR3, which is located on the leukocyte cell surface. In the past year, three low molecular weight compounds have been developed that can block this receptor. Such compounds may be developed into orally available drugs aimed at preventing eosinophil recruitment and, hence, the pathogenesis associated with the activation of these cells within the lung tissue.
Pease
J E
JE
Division of Biomedical Sciences, Imperial College School of Medicine, London, UK. j.pease@ic.ac.uk
Williams
T J
TJ
D000818:Animals; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000503:physiopathology; D054413:Chemokine CCL11; D019742:Chemokines, CC / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000502:physiology; D002631:Chemotactic Factors, Eosinophil / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors* / Q000502:physiology; D004804:Eosinophils / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D054397:Receptors, CCR3; D019707:Receptors, Chemokine / Q000187:drug effects
C515456:CCL11 protein, human; C515350:CCR3 protein, human; D054413:Chemokine CCL11; D019742:Chemokines, CC; D002631:Chemotactic Factors, Eosinophil; D054397:Receptors, CCR3; D019707:Receptors, Chemokine