Centocor's Avakine Effective In Crohn's

Centocor's chimeric monoclonal antibody Avakine (infliximab; cA2) iseffective in the treatment of Crohn's disease, according to findings reported in The New England Journal of Medicine (October 9 issue).

Infliximab, which works by blocking the activity of tumor necrosis factor-alpha, has also demonstrated an effect in rheumatoid arthritis and may have potential in other autoimmune diseases, say the researchers.

The 108-patient study showed that after four weeks, two-thirds of patients who received the antibody responded favorably to the treatment, while one-third of patients were defined as being in clinical remission. Additional research has also shown that a single infusion of infliximab can last for as long as a year in some patients.