Mercaptopurine in the Treatment of Steroid-Resistant Nephrotic Syndrome

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Abstract
PROMPTED by the observation that the administration of 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP) to rabbits resulted in complete inhibition of the primary immune response and partial inhibition of the secondary immune response,1,2 Dameshek and Schwartz3 used this agent successfully in the treatment of some patients with "autoimmune" diseases. Antimetabolites have since been widely used as immunosuppressive agents in homotransplantation procedures and have had more limited application in the treatment of various connective-tissue disorders, including systemic lupus erythematosus, scleroderma, plasma-cell hepatitis and polymyositis.4 5 6 The suppressive effect of the purine antagonists on immunologic reactions has also suggested their use in the nephrotic syndrome, a . . .