What is cangrelor, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? Cangrelor is an anti-platelet drug, that is, a drug that inhibits the ability of platelets to clump together as part of a blood clot. Cangrelor prevents blood clots by reversibly binding to the P2Y12 receptor on platelets, preventing adenosine diphosphate (ADP) from activating platelets. …
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What is abacavir, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? Abacavir is an oral medication that is used for the treatment of infections with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It is in a class of drugs called reverse transcriptase inhibitors which also includes zalcitabine (Hivid), zidovudine (Retrovir), didanosine (Videx), lamivudine (Epivir), emtricitabine (Emtriva), and stavudine (Zerit). During infection with …
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What is botulinum toxin type A, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? OnabotulinumtoxinA is an injectable neuro-toxin, that is, a toxic chemical that blocks the ability of nerves to make muscles contract. In other words, it paralyzes muscles. To cause muscles to contract, nerves release a chemical, acetylcholine, where they meet muscle cells. The acetylcholine attaches to receptors …
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What is aldesleukin, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? Aldesleukin is a man-made protein that has the same action as native human interleukin-2 (IL-2) that is used for treating cancer of the kidney and skin. Interleukins are the messengers by which white blood cells communicate with each other to coordinate inflammation and immunity. Among its actions, IL-2 increases …
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What is auranofin, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? Auranofin is an oral, gold-containing chemical (salt) used for treating rheumatoid arthritis. Other gold salts available are injectable and include aurothioglucose (Solganal) and gold sodium thiomalate (Myochrysine). It is not well understood exactly how gold salts work. In patients with inflammatory arthritis, such as adult and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, …
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What is sargramostim, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? Sargramostim is a man-made form of the naturally-occurring protein, granulocyte, macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF). GM-CSF is produced in the body by the immune system and stimulates the formation of white blood cells, including the granulocyte and the macrophage. Granulocytes and macrophages take part in the inflammatory reaction. They are …
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What is docetaxel, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? Docetaxel is a drug that is used primarily for treating breast cancer. Docetaxel works by attacking cancer cells. Every cell in the body contains a supporting structure (almost like a skeleton) called the microtubular network. If this "skeleton" is changed or damaged, the cell can't grow or reproduce. Docetaxel …
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What is nilotinib? What is nilotinib used for? Nilotinib is an oral medication used for treating chronic myeloid leukemia and acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Nilotinib is classified as a kinase inhibitor. Kinase inhibitors include dasatinib (Sprycel), erlotinib (Tarceva), gefitinib (Iressa), imatinib (Gleevec), pazopanib (Votrient), sunitinib (Sutent), and vandetanib (Caprelsa). Kinase inhibitors prevent the growth of tumors by reducing the action of …
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What is belimumab? What is belimumab used for? Belimumab is a synthetic (man-made) injectable antibody that reduces the activity of immune cells called B-cells in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). SLE is an inflammatory autoimmune disease, which means that the body’s immune system attacks its own tissues and causes inflammation. Parts of the body affected by SLE include the …
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What is atazanavir, and how does it work (mechanism of action)? Atazanavir is an oral medication that is used for treating infections caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). It is in a class of drugs called protease inhibitors that also includes ritonavir (Norvir), nelfinavir (Viracept), indinavir (Crixivan) and saquinavir (Invirase, Fortovase). During infection with HIV, the HIV virus multiplies …
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