Table 2.
Drugs/Approaches with Antifibrotic Potential
| Drug/compound | Company | Status | Mode of Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Losartan | Merck & Co. Inc | Preclinical | Angiotensin II receptor antagonist |
| Halofuginone | Collgard Biopharmaceuticals, Ltd | Preclinical | Inhibits Smad3 binding to DNA |
| *PirfenidoneIntermune, Inc | Preclinical | Inhibits fibroblast growth | |
| **Suramin | Parke-Davis | Preclinical | Anti-parasitic drug and reverse transcriptase inhibitor |
| ***Imatinib mesylate | Novartis | Preclinical | Anti-neoplastic drug inhibitor of tyrosine kinase |
*
Has been in clinical trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and has received orphan drug status for treatment of scleroderma by FDA (see text)
**
Used clinically as chemotherapeutic and anti-parasitic agent
***
Also called Gleevec ® approved for use in chronic myelogenous leukemia and gastrointestinal stromal tumor