The evolving clinical profile of abatacept (CTLA4-Ig): a novel co-stimulatory modulator for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis

Abstract

Abatacept (CTLA4-Ig) is a novel fusion protein designed to modulate the T cell co-stimulatory signal mediated through the CD28-CD80/86 pathway. Clinical trials have provided preliminary evidence of the efficacy of this compound in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. This review describes the molecular and biologic bases for the use of abatacept in rheumatoid arthritis and summarizes the current clinical data on its safety and effectiveness in this disease.

Figure 1

Percentage of patients meeting American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20, ACR 50, and ACR 70 response criteria after 85 days of therapy with abatacept, LEA29Y, or placebo. Adapted with permission from Moreland and coworkers [2].

Figure 2

Percentage of patients meeting American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 20, ACR 50, and ACR 70 response criteria after 6 months of therapy with abatacept or placebo. From data presented by Kremer and coworkers [3]. *P ≤ 0.05 versus placebo; ^†P ≤ 0.001 versus placebo.