Macrophage-derived IL-18 targeting for the treatment of Crohn's disease.

Crohn's disease is an inflammatory bowel disease associated with several changes in the immune system, including an increased number of infiltrating macrophages. These macrophages release a variety of proinflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha, macrophage infiltrating factor (MIF), interleukin (IL)-6, IL-12 and IL-18, which are critically involved in the onset and the development of Crohn's disease. We here focus on the role of macrophages, especially macrophage-derived IL-18 in both patients with Crohn's disease and a murine model of Crohn's disease.