Mepolizumab Treatment for Rhinovirus-induced Asthma Exacerbations

Summary

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airways characterized by lower respiratory tract (LRT) symptoms such as wheeze, cough and airway obstruction. Patients with asthma frequently suffer from exacerbations, which can be triggered by allergens and, in particular, viral respiratory infections. It has recently been shown that mepolizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody that neutralizes interleukin(IL)-5, markedly reduces the exacerbation rate in asthma patients with eosinophilic airway inflammation. Previous studies have indicated that in a mixed population (eosinophilic and non eosinophilic) of mild asthma patients, mepolizumab did not have an impact on lung function and asthma symptom scores upon allergen provocation, although it did on markers such as sputum and blood eosinophils. Together, these observations led to the hypothesis that mepolizumab treatment reduces the exacerbation rate by limiting virus-induced asthma exacerbations. The investigators hypothesize that neutralization of IL-5 during virus infection in patients with allergic asthma: 1. Reduces virus-induced bronchial inflammation 2. Attenuates virus-induced asthma symptoms, airflow limitation and bronchial hyperresponsiveness. 3. Enhances cellular immune responses to the virus. The aims of this study are to: 1. To investigate whether IL-5 neutralization reduces the inflammatory response to viral airway infections in allergic asthma patients 2. To investigate whether IL-5 neutralization prevents or reduces asthma symptoms during virus-induced asthma exacerbations 3. To investigate whether IL-5 neutralization affects the cellular immune response to viral airway infections in allergic asthma patients

Timeline

Start

2012-01

Primary completion

2013-12

Completion

2014-03

Publications

• Background Nair P, Pizzichini MM, Kjarsgaard M, Inman MD, Efthimiadis A, Pizzichini E, Hargreave FE, O'Byrne PM. Mepolizumab for prednisone-dependent asthma with sputum eosinophilia. N Engl J Med. 2009 Mar 5;360(10):985-93. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa0805435.
• Background Haldar P, Brightling CE, Hargadon B, Gupta S, Monteiro W, Sousa A, Marshall RP, Bradding P, Green RH, Wardlaw AJ, Pavord ID. Mepolizumab and exacerbations of refractory eosinophilic asthma. N Engl J Med. 2009 Mar 5;360(10):973-84. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa0808991.
• Background Leckie MJ, ten Brinke A, Khan J, Diamant Z, O'Connor BJ, Walls CM, Mathur AK, Cowley HC, Chung KF, Djukanovic R, Hansel TT, Holgate ST, Sterk PJ, Barnes PJ. Effects of an interleukin-5 blocking monoclonal antibody on eosinophils, airway hyper-responsiveness, and the late asthmatic response. Lancet. 2000 Dec 23-30;356(9248):2144-8. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(00)03496-6.
• Background Message SD, Laza-Stanca V, Mallia P, Parker HL, Zhu J, Kebadze T, Contoli M, Sanderson G, Kon OM, Papi A, Jeffery PK, Stanciu LA, Johnston SL. Rhinovirus-induced lower respiratory illness is increased in asthma and related to virus load and Th1/2 cytokine and IL-10 production. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008 Sep 9;105(36):13562-7. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0804181105. Epub 2008 Sep 3.

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