Immunoadsorption using Immusorba TR and PH.

Immusorba TR (IM-TR) and PH (IM-PH) were developed as immunoadsorbents from nonbiological materials as affinity ligands for removal of pathogenic substances. The immunoadsorbents in IM-TR and IM-PH are immobilized on a polyvinyl alcohol gel with tryptophan and phenylalanine, respectively, as a ligand. IM-TR is mainly clinically applied to autoimmune neurological diseases such as myasthenia gravis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, and multiple sclerosis. IM-PH is also applied to neurological diseases but mainly to rheumatic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. Many autoantibodies with different specificities have been found to have similar affinity for the ligand of Immusorba, and it is expected that Immusorba will be used against more diseases and help to elucidate the pathogenesis of diseases via identification of unknown pathogenic substances adsorbed to Immusorba.