Rilonacept, sold under the brand name Arcalyst, is a
medication
Medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal product, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to medical diagnosis, diagnose, cure, treat, or preventive medicine, prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmaco ...
used to treat
cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes, including
familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome, and
Muckle–Wells syndrome; deficiency of
interleukin-1 receptor antagonist; and recurrent
pericarditis
Pericarditis () is inflammation of the pericardium, the fibrous sac surrounding the heart. Symptoms typically include sudden onset of sharp chest pain, which may also be felt in the shoulders, neck, or back. The pain is typically less severe whe ...
.
[ ] Rilonacept is an
interleukin 1
The Interleukin-1 family (IL-1 family) is a group of 11 cytokines that plays a central role in the regulation of immune and inflammatory responses to infections or sterile insults.
Discovery
Discovery of these cytokines began with studies on t ...
inhibitor.
Rilonacept is a dimeric
fusion protein consisting of the ligand-binding domains of the extracellular portions of the human interleukin-1 receptor component (IL-1R1) and IL-1 receptor accessory protein (IL-1RAcP) linked in-line to the fragment-crystallizable portion (
Fc region) of human IgG1 that binds and neutralizes
IL-1.
Rilonacept was given an
orphan drug
An orphan drug is a medication, pharmaceutical agent that is developed to treat certain rare medical conditions. An orphan drug would not be profitable to produce without government assistance, due to the small population of patients affected by th ...
designation by the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...
(FDA) and is used for the treatment of
cryopyrin-associated periodic syndromes (CAPS), including
familial cold autoinflammatory syndrome,
Muckle–Wells syndrome.
Rilonacept is the first drug approved by the FDA to treat recurrent pericarditis.
Rilonacept was approved for medical use in the United States in February 2008.
On May 8, 2012, an FDA Advisory Panel voted 11–0 against the approval of rilonacept for the treatment of
gout
Gout ( ) is a form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by recurrent attacks of pain in a red, tender, hot, and Joint effusion, swollen joint, caused by the deposition of needle-like crystals of uric acid known as monosodium urate crysta ...
, stating that the benefits did not outweigh the risks associated with the drug.
References
External links
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{{Portal bar , Medicine
Engineered proteins
Immunosuppressants
Orphan drugs