Leflunomide. Me

A group of researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine found that Abatacept (Orencia), a rheumatoid arthritis medication, reduced death rates and lowered the severity of the disease in mice infected with Influenza A virus. This finding may show a new approach to influenza virus treatment where the protective effect is combined with less aggressive immune response to the virus. While the activity of the immune system in the lungs is not affected allowing to kill the virus, the hyperactivity of the T-cells that make you feel sick or even develop pneumonia is suppressed.

Overreaction of the immune system is typical for healthy, young people. It is considered to be the major cause of death from pandemic outbreaks of flu. The suggestion is thought to be true for the early stages of “swine flu” (H1N1). Abatacept (Orencia) has been approved by FDA for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, but not for the treatment of influenza yet.
The efficacy of the drug was tested on mice. It was found that the survival of mice treated Abatacept (Orencia) was 30% higher than among the untreated mice given the lethal dose of the virus influenza A. Recovery time was shorter and lung damage less severe among the mice treated with Abatacept (Orencia). Researchers found that the treatment diminished the tissue damage resulting from the immune overreaction and still allowed the body to combat the virus. The survival rate among the treated mice was considerably higher – 80% against 50% among the untreated mice.
Currently three types of seasonal influenza are known: A, B and C. There is a number of Influenza A subtypes of including the recently discovered strain H1N1 also called “swine flu”. Today vaccination remains the most effective method of preventing the influenza virus infection. The popular antiviral drug, Tamiflu (Oseltamivir) stops the virus multiplication when taken within the first 2 days of influenza symptoms.