Cyclosporine, FK-506 and other drugs in organ transplantation

Abstract

As experience of the most effective way to use cyclosporine for immunosuppression in organ transplantation grows, new drugs are emerging, which may improve the potency of future immunosuppressive protocols or at least provide alternative drugs in selected situations. These newer agents include FK506, which is undergoing extensive clinical trials, rapamycin, RS-61443 and deoxyspergualin. The increasing understanding of the mechanism of action of some of these drugs on signal transduction pathways in the T cell should allow the development of drugs with perhaps more specific actions.