An inhaled “bifunctional” dual PDE3/4 inhibitor provides additional short-term improvements in lung function compared to existing classes of bronchodilator: implications for future treatment of COPD

摘要

RPL554 is a novel inhaled dual phosphodiesterase (PDE)3/4 inhibitor that has been developed with the goal of having “bifunctional” bronchodilator and anti-inflammatory activities in a single molecule [1, 2]. In initial exploratory clinical studies, RPL554 showed substantial bronchodilation that was comparable with peak effects reported in patients with asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) after the administration of an inhaled β2-agonist, and also exhibited bronchoprotective and anti-inflammatory activities at doses having minimal adverse effects [3].RPL554 showed substantial bronchodilation in COPD patients but far more information from more appropriate investigations is required before we have a proper understanding of the real role that RPL554 could have in the treatment of COPD.