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The effects of tacrolimus on murine acute lung injury were tested, especially in comparison to dexamethasone. Acute lung injury was induced by intratracheal instillation of bleomycin. Oral tacrolimus significantly improved survival rates of bleomycin-exposed mice, while cyclosporin A or dexamethasone did not. After instillation of bleomycin (day 0), a migration of neutrophils into alveolar spaces peaked on day 3, with concomitant increases of chemokines. On day 6, marked morphological changes in the lungs were observed. All these changes were significantly inhibited by tacrolimus. Furthermore, DNA ladder and immunohistochemical analyses of lungs showed that apoptosis of lung cells appeared on day 6 and was abolished only by the treatment of tacrolimus. These results suggest that both anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic action of tacrolimus contribute to improvement of bleomycin-induced acute lung injury.

Bradykinin has been suggested to be involved in allergic diseases. In this study, we tested the effect of FK3657 ((E)-3-(6-acetamido-3-pyridyl)-N-[N-[2,4-dichloro-3-[(2-methyl-8-quinolinyl)-oxymethyl]phenyl]-N-methylaminocarbonylmethyl]acrylamide), an orally active non-peptide bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist, on allergic airway disease models in guinea pigs. FK3657 given orally inhibited bradykinin-induced or dextran sulfate (an activator of kinin–kallikrein cascade)-induced bronchoconstriction and plasma extravasation in the lower airways (trachea and main bronchi) and nasal mucosa of guinea pigs with ED50 of 0.04–0.23 mg/kg. In the antigen-induced dual asthmatic response model of guinea pigs, FK3657 significantly attenuated the late phase asthmatic response, but not the immediate asthmatic response. FK3657 also significantly inhibited the 2,4-tolylene diisocyanate (TDI)-induced plasma extravasation in nasal mucosa of TDI-sensitized guinea pigs. These results suggest that oral FK3657 may be useful for asthma or allergic rhinitis as a therapeutic drug.

Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) has been implicated in joint destruction of chronic arthritis diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. FR217840 (2R)-1-([5-(4-fluorophenyl)-2-thienyl]sulfonyl)-N-hydroxy-4-(methylsulfonyl)-2-piperazinecarboxamide is a potent, orally active synthetic MMP inhibitor that inhibits human collagenases (MMP-1, MMP-8 and MMP-13), gelatinases (MMP-2 and MMP-9) and membrane type MMP (MT-MMP) (MT1-MMP/MMP-14). FR217840 also inhibits rat collagenase and gelatinase. We studied the effect of FR217840 on a rat adjuvant induced arthritis model. Although oral administration (days 1-21) of FR217840 (3.2, 10, 32 mg/kg) to adjuvant injected Lewis rats did not affect inflammation, as indicated by both hind paw swelling and histological inflammatory infiltration, FR217840 suppressed both bone destruction and serum pyridinoline content in a dose-dependent manner. Also, FR217840 (32 mg/kg) reduced tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAP) cell number in the ankle joints of rats with arthritis. These results indicate that FR217840 successfully suppressed joint destruction and suggest that FR217840 may have potential as a novel anti-rheumatic drug.

We compared the effects of a tachykinin NK1 receptor antagonist, FK888 (N2-[(4R)-4-hydroxy-1-(1-methyl-1H-indol-3-yl)carbonyl-L-prolyl]-N-methy l-N -phenylmethyl-3-(2-naphthyl)-L-alaninamide), and a tachykinin NK2 receptor antagonist, SR48968 ((S)-N-methyl-N[4-(4-acetylamino-4-phenyl piperidino)-2-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)butyl]benzamide]), on citric acid-induced cough and bronchoconstriction in conscious guinea pigs. FK888 and SR48968 inhibited the cough dose dependently. Combination of FK888 and SR48968 showed a small additive effect compared with that of FK888 or SR48968 alone. SR48968 but not FK888 inhibited the bronchoconstriction dose dependently. These results indicate that tachykinin NK1 receptors as well as tachykinin NK2 receptors are involved in the citric acid-induced cough response. The antitussive activity of the tachykinin NK1 receptor antagonist appeared not to depend on the anti-bronchoconstrictor effects.