Biologic
UniProt Q01344
Benralizumab
Fasenra
- Mechanism of action
- IL-5 receptor alpha antagonist (cytolytic mAb)
- In plain language
- A lab-made antibody that latches onto a docking site on eosinophils — a white blood cell involved in allergic inflammation — and flags them for destruction by the immune system, sharply cutting their numbers.
- How it works
- Benralizumab is a humanized, afucosylated IgG1 monoclonal antibody that binds with high affinity to the alpha subunit of the interleukin-5 receptor (IL-5Rα) expressed on eosinophils and basophils. Because the antibody's Fc region lacks core fucosylation, it binds FcγRIIIa on natural killer cells with enhanced affinity, triggering antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity. This induces near-complete apoptosis and depletion of circulating and tissue eosinophils and basophils, rather than merely neutralizing IL-5 signaling.
- Therapeutic applications
- FDA-approved for add-on maintenance treatment of severe eosinophilic-phenotype asthma in patients 6 and older, treatment of eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis in adults, and treatment of hypereosinophilic syndrome in patients 12 and older. Not indicated for relief of acute bronchospasm.
- Class
- Monoclonal antibody
- Therapeutic area
- Respiratory / Immunology
View
Related compounds