Alicaforsen

Alicaforsen selectively inhibits ICAM‑1 gene expression. Over-expression of ICAM‑1 occurs in a wide variety of inflammatory disorders, including ulcerative colitis (UC), pouchitis and tissues in the eye, gastrointestinal teact, lungs and skin. UC is an inflammatory bowel disease of the colon, a part of the large intestine, and pouchitis is an inflammation of the surgically constructed internal pouch created in UC patients when their diseased colons are removed. [ISIS Pharmaceutical Website] Alicaforsen is a RNase H dependent phosphorothioate-modified antisense oligodeoxynucleotide inhibitor which shuts down specific sequences of intracellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM1) mRNA and thus production of ICAM1, which prevents the inflammatory response. ICAM is a cell surface glycoprotein (immunoglobulin superfamily) which facilitates leukocyte adhesion and antigen presentation in the intestinal mucosa. Alicaforsen hybridizes the oligonucleotide strand with the target mRNA to suppress expression of ICAM1.