Thalidomide is the drug of choice in the erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) type of lepra reaction. Lately it has been used successfully in other diseases, such as discoid lupus erythematosus, actinic prurigo, Behcet's disease, etc. However, its mechanism of action remains unknown. In patients for whom thalidomide provided relief in their disorder, the proportions of T lymphocytes and their subsets in peripheral blood were assessed by means of monoclonal antibodies. Three lepromatous leprosy patients with ENL had their T helper populations significantly increased after thalidomide therapy. A 14-year-old girl with Behcet's syndrome showed a consistent decrease in Ia+ cells throughout her three-month course of thalidomide therapy. The same findings were observed in two patients with the actinic prurigo type of polymorphous light eruption. From these results, we conclude that thalidomide may act as an immunomodulating agent on T cell subsets.
BT - International journal of leprosy and other mycobacterial diseases : official organ of the International Leprosy Association C1 - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3874920?dopt=Abstract DA - 1985 Jun IS - 2 J2 - Int. J. Lepr. Other Mycobact. Dis. LA - eng N2 -Thalidomide is the drug of choice in the erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL) type of lepra reaction. Lately it has been used successfully in other diseases, such as discoid lupus erythematosus, actinic prurigo, Behcet's disease, etc. However, its mechanism of action remains unknown. In patients for whom thalidomide provided relief in their disorder, the proportions of T lymphocytes and their subsets in peripheral blood were assessed by means of monoclonal antibodies. Three lepromatous leprosy patients with ENL had their T helper populations significantly increased after thalidomide therapy. A 14-year-old girl with Behcet's syndrome showed a consistent decrease in Ia+ cells throughout her three-month course of thalidomide therapy. The same findings were observed in two patients with the actinic prurigo type of polymorphous light eruption. From these results, we conclude that thalidomide may act as an immunomodulating agent on T cell subsets.
PY - 1985 SP - 201 EP - 5 T2 - International journal of leprosy and other mycobacterial diseases : official organ of the International Leprosy Association TI - Thalidomide--effect on T cell subsets as a possible mechanism of action. VL - 53 SN - 0148-916X ER -