Interferon alfa-2b is an antiviral or
antineoplastic drug. It is a
recombinant form of the protein
Interferon alpha-2 that was originally sequenced and produced recombinantly in ''
E. coli
''Escherichia coli'' (),Wells, J. C. (2000) Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. Harlow ngland Pearson Education Ltd. also known as ''E. coli'' (), is a Gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped, coliform bacterium of the genus ''Escher ...
'' in the laboratory of
Charles Weissmann at the
University of Zurich, in 1980. It was developed at
Biogen, and ultimately marketed by Schering-Plough under the trade name Intron-A. It was also produced in 1986 in recombinant human form, in the
Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology
The Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology ( es, Centro de Ingeniería Genética y Biotecnología, CIGB) is a research institute in Havana, Cuba. It is responsible for creating the Abdala vaccine.
The Centre developed the COVID-19 vac ...
of Havana, Cuba, under the name Heberon Alfa R.
It has been used for a wide range of indications, including viral infections and cancers. This drug is approved around the world for the treatment of chronic
hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV) that primarily affects the liver; it is a type of viral hepatitis. During the initial infection people often have mild or no symptoms. Occasionally a fever, dark urine, a ...
, chronic
hepatitis B,
hairy cell leukemia,
Behçet's disease, chronic
myelogenous leukemia
Myeloid leukemia is a type of leukemia affecting myeloid tissue.
Types include:
* Acute myeloid leukemia
* Chronic myelogenous leukemia
* Acute megakaryoblastic leukemia
* Blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm
See also
* Hematological mali ...
, multiple myeloma,
follicular lymphoma, carcinoid tumor,
mastocytosis and malignant melanoma.
The medication is being used in clinical trials to treat patients with
SARS-CoV-2 and there are published results in the peer-reviewed scientific literature.
So far, two non-peer reviewed research articles have been published. One study at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, showed evidence of a direct anti-viral effect of Interferon alpha against novel Coronavirus in vitro. The study demonstrated around 10,000 fold reduction in the quantity of virus that was pre-treated with Interferon alpha 48 hours earlier. A second study by universities in China, Australia and Canada analysed 77 moderate COVID-19 subjects in Wuhan and observed that those who received Interferon alpha-2b showed a significant reduction in the duration of virus shedding period and even in levels of the inflammatory cytokine, IL-6.
This drug is also used off-label in cats and dogs, both by injection and orally.
The cross-species nature of IFN-α allow it to work in non-human animals,
but the period of usefulness is limited by the production of antibodies against this foreign protein.
[
]
See also
* Interferon
Interferons (IFNs, ) are a group of signaling proteins made and released by host cells in response to the presence of several viruses. In a typical scenario, a virus-infected cell will release interferons causing nearby cells to heighten the ...
* Ropeginterferon alfa-2b
Ropeginterferon alfa-2b, sold under the brand name Besremi, is a medication used to treat polycythemia vera. It is an interferon. It is given by injection.
The most common side effects include low levels of white blood cells and platelets (bloo ...
References
External links
Intron-A Summary of Product Characteristics
*
Antiviral drugs
Schering-Plough brands
Merck & Co. brands
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