Sulfasalazine

Sulfasalazine, a sulfa agent and a derivative of mesalazine, is used primarily as an anti-inflammatory agent. Target: Others Sulfasalazine (Azulfidine), used to treat pain and swelling in arthritis, belongs to a class of drugs called sulfa drugs. (In Vitro) :Treatment of SW620 colon cells with sulfasalazine inhibits TNFα-, LPS-, or phorbol ester-induced NFκB activation. NFκB-dependent transcription is inhibited by sulfasalazine at micro- to millimolar concentrations. TNFα-induced nuclear translocation of NFκB is prevented by sulfasalazine through inhibition of IκBα degradation. Pre-incubation with 5 mM of sulfasalazine alone significantly increases basal mRNA expression of all pro-inflammatory cytokines with levels of IL-6 mRNA increased by 80-fold compared with vehicle control. Once digested, sulfasalazine is cleaved into sulfapyridine and 5-aminosalicylic acid by colonic bacteria, and the latter, too, is reported to suppress NF-kappaB activity. (In Vivo) :At low doses (0.25 mM), SAS is able to suppress glioma growth by over 60% compared to untreated controls.