Abstract

Asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are characterized by chronic airway inflammation. However, because patients with COPD and certain patients with asthma show little or no therapeutic benefit from existing corticosteroid therapies, there is an urgent need for novel anti-inflammatory strategies. The transcription factor nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is central to inflammation and is necessary for the expression of numerous inflammatory genes. Proinflammatory cytokines, including interleukin (IL)-1β and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, activate the IκB kinase complex (IKK) to promote the degradation of inhibitory IκB proteins and activate NF-κB. This pathway and, in particular, the main IκB kinase, IKK2, are now considered prime targets for novel anti-inflammatory drugs. Therefore, we have used adenoviral overexpression to demonstrate NF-κB and IKK2 dependence of key inflammatory genes, including intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1, cyclooxygenase-2, IL-6, IL-8, granulocyte macrophage-colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), regulated on activation normal T cell expressed and secreted (RANTES), monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1), growth-regulated oncogene-α (GROα), neutrophil-activating protein-2 (NAP-2), and epithelial neutrophil activating peptide 78 (ENA-78) in primary human airways smooth muscle cells. Because this cell type is central to the pathogenesis of airway inflammatory diseases, these data predict a beneficial effect of IKK2 inhibition. These validated outputs were therefore used to evaluate the novel IKK inhibitors N-(6-chloro-9H-β-carbolin-8-yl) nicotinamide (PS-1145) and N-(6-chloro-7-methoxy-9H-β-carbolin-8-yl)-2-methyl-nicotinamide (ML120B) on IL-1β and TNFα-induced expression, and this was compared with the corticosteroid dexamethasone. As observed above, ICAM-1, IL-6, IL-8, GM-CSF, RANTES, MCP-1, GROα, NAP-2, and ENA-78 expression was reduced by the IKK inhibitors. Furthermore, this inhibition was either as effective, or for ICAM-1, MCP-1, GROα, and NAP-2, more effective, than a maximally effective concentration of dexamethasone. We therefore suggest that IKK inhibitors may be of considerable benefit in inflammatory airways diseases, particularly in COPD or severe asthma, in which corticosteroids are ineffective.