The latest developments in synthetic peptides with immunoregulatory activities.

In the past few years, many researches have provided us with much data demonstrating the abilities of synthetic peptides to impact immune response in vitro and in vivo. These peptides were designed according to the structure of some important protein molecules which play a key role in immune response, so they act with specific targets. The class I and II MHC-derived peptides inhibit the TCR recognition of antigen peptide-MHC complex. Rationally designed CD80 and CD154-binding peptides block the interaction between cell surface costimulatory molecules on antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and T cells. Some peptides were designed to inhibit the activities of cell signal proteins, including JNK, NF-κB and NFAT. Some peptide antagonists competitively bind to important cytokines and inhibit their activities, such as TNF-α, TGF-β and IL-1β inhibitory peptides. Adhesion molecule ICAM-1 derived peptides block the T cell adhesion and activation. These immunoregulatory peptides showed therapeutic effect in several animal models, including collagen-induced arthritis (CIA), autoimmune cystitis model, murine skin transplant model and cardiac allograft model. These results give us important implications for the development of a novel therapy for immune mediated diseases.