CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CombinatoRx, Incorporated (Nasdaq: CRXX) today announced the publication of new in vivo research in Arthritis Research and Therapy on a systems biology based strategy that selectively amplifies the anti-inflammatory activity of very low dose glucocorticoids in immune cells without modulation of pathways associated with glucocorticoid toxicity. This research, which was conducted by CombinatoRx scientists, demonstrates that the multi-target mechanism of low dose prednisolone (a glucocorticoid) combined with dipyridamole (a cardiovascular agent) creates a dissociated activity profile with an increased therapeutic window through selective amplification of glucocorticoid-mediated anti-inflammatory signaling. The combination suppressed release of pro-inflammatory mediators, including TNF-a, IL-6 and others, from human peripheral blood mononuclear cells and mouse macrophages. After 8 weeks of oral dosing in mouse models, the immune-specific amplification of prednisolone’s anti-inflammatory activity by dipyridamole did not extend to glucocorticoid-mediated adverse effects including corticosterone suppression.
