Simple Understanding and Optimistic Strategy for Coping with Atopic Diseases

In this article, accumulated investigations were reviewed to present an 'IL-5 central hypothesis' for eosinophilic inflammation. In this simple working hypothesis, mechanisms of clinical amelioration of atopic diseases manifested by glucocorticoids or immunosuppressants such as cyclosporin A or FK506 were easily understood to stem from the inhibition of IL-5 production and gene transcription. Screening of macrolide molecules resulted in the detection of nonactin (code name: OM-01), which inhibits production and gene transcription of IL-5 but not of IL-2 or IL-4. It was suggested that this kind of approach may open a new era of 'specific gene transcription control' for the management of allergic and other human disorders.