dirucotide

Dirucotide is a synthetically prepared peptide drug, specifically a 17-amino acid sequence identical to residues 82–98 of human myelin basic protein (MBP). It was developed as an antigen-specific immunotherapy for multiple sclerosis (MS), aiming to induce immune tolerance by suppressing autoimmune T cell responses against MBP, particularly in patients with HLA-DR2 or HLA-DR4 haplotypes. The drug was administered intravenously and designed to reduce the production of autoantibodies and autoreactive T cells that target endogenous MBP, thereby potentially delaying disease progression in MS. Dirucotide showed some efficacy in phase II trials for certain genetic subgroups but failed to meet primary endpoints in phase III trials, leading to discontinuation of its development after 2009. The drug was originally developed at the University of Alberta and further advanced by BioMS Medical Corp., with Eli Lilly later joining as a development partner[1][3][4][5][7].

Brand names

Dirucotide

Other names

dirucotideMBP 8298MBP8298MBP-8298Dirucotide [USAN:INN]