Cytokines as therapeutic drugs.

Cytokines are a growing group of proteins that are responsible for the communication of cells of the immune system, hematopoietic cells, and other cell types. They play a dominant role in various diseases, particularly in promoting and perpetuating inflammation. Cytokine production is a reaction of the body to a pathologic state to restore homeostasis. In such cases, the therapeutic intervention should support the reaction of the body by giving the cytokine itself (agonistic therapeutics). In other cases, manifestation of a disease results from an overproduction of cytokines, making cytokine antagonists desirable therapeutic drugs. Furthermore, cytokines may be good candidates as cancer therapeutics, especially to support the restoration of blood cell populations after chemotherapy or radiation.