Abstract
Prostaglandins (PGs) produced by the inducible enzyme cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) are important mediators of pain and inflammation. In animals, selective inhibitors of COX-2 have been shown to be anti-inflammatory without typical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) side-effects. Research directed towards the identification of potent and selective inhibitors of COX-2 has made significant advances in recent years. The current different structural classes of COX-2 inhibitors are discussed, with an emphasis on the most recent primary and patent literature. Early human clinical results indicate that COX-2 inhibitors offer a significant advancement for the treatment of inflammatory disease states.