Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine, a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid known for over thirty years, for the treatment of psoriasis and achievement of rapid clearance of the psoriatic skin lesions together with the reversion of the histopathological signs of disease to normalcy with no detectable side effects. The cyclopamine-induced clearance of psoriatic lesions from the skin of patients is associated with the causation of cellular differentiation in lesional epidermis and with the rapid disappearance of CD4(+) lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells from lesional skin. Skin lesions that show inhibition of differentiation of epidermal cells similar to that in psoriasis have been found to disappear following similar administrations of a selective inhibitor of Hedgehog/Smoothened signaling.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine, a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid known for over thirty years, for the treatment of psoriasis and achievement of rapid clearance of the psoriatic skin lesions together with the reversion of the histopathological signs of disease to normalcy with no detectable side effects. The cyclopamine-induced clearance of psoriatic lesions from the skin of patients is associated with the causation of cellular differentiation in lesional epidermis and with the rapid disappearance of CD4(+) lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells from lesional skin. Therapeutic compositions comprising of cyclopamine and a corticosteroid and/or the pre-treatment of lesions with a corticosteroid provide significantly further increased therapeutic effectiveness over the use of cyclopamine alone or a corticosteroid alone.

Abstract: Cyclopamine or a similarly specific inhibitor of Hedgehog/Smoothened (Hh/Smo) signaling can be used for obtaining decrease of pigmentation of hyperpigmented skin areas.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine in vivo on basal cell carcinomas (BCC's) to achieve therapeutic effect by causing differentiation of the tumor cells and, at the same time, apoptotic death and removal of these tumor cells while preserving the normal tissue cells, including the undifferentiated cells of the normal epidermal basal layer and hair follicles. Causation of apoptosis by cyclopamine is by a non-genotoxic mechanism and thus unlike the radiation therapy and most of the currently used cancer chemotherapeutics which act by causing DNA-damage. These novel effects, previously unachieved by a cancer chemotherapeutic, make the use of cyclopamine highly desirable in cancer therapy, in the treatment of BCC's and other tumors that use the hedgehog/smoothened signal transduction pathway for proliferation and prevention of apoptosis.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine in vivo on basal cell carcinomas (BCC's) to achieve therapeutic effect by causing differentiation of the tumor cells and, at the same time, apoptotic death and removal of these tumor cells while preserving the normal tissue cells, including the undifferentiated cells of the normal epidermal basal layer and hair follicles. Causation of apoptosis by cyclopamine is by a non-genotoxic mechanism and thus unlike the radiation therapy and most of the currently used cancer chemotherapeutics which act by causing DNA-damage. These novel effects, previously unachieved by a cancer chemotherapeutic, make the use of cyclopamine highly desirable in cancer therapy, in the treatment of BCC's and other tumors that use the hedgehog/smoothened signal transduction pathway for proliferation and prevention of apoptosis.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine in vivo on basal cell carcinomas (BCC's) to achieve therapeutic effect by causing differentiation of the tumor cells and, at the same time, apoptotic death and removal of these tumor cells while preserving the normal tissue cells, including the undifferentiated cells of the normal epidermal basal layer and hair follicles. Causation of apoptosis by cyclopamine is by a non-genotoxic mechanism and thus unlike the radiation therapy and most of the currently used cancer chemotherapeutics which act by causing DNA-damage. These novel effects, previously unachieved by a cancer chemotherapeutic, make the use of cyclopamine highly desirable in cancer therapy, in the treatment of BCC's and other tumors that use the hedgehog/smoothened signal transduction pathway for proliferation and prevention of apoptosis.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine, a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid known for over thirty years, for the treatment of psoriasis and achievement of rapid clearance of the psoriatic skin lesions together with the reversion of the histopathological signs of disease to normalcy with no detectable side effects. The cyclopamine-induced clearance of psoriatic lesions from the skin of patients is associated with the causation of cellular differentiation in lesional epidermis and with the rapid disappearance of CD4(+) lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells from lesional skin. Therapeutic compositions comprising of cyclopamine and a corticosteroid and/or the pre-treatment of lesions with a corticosteroid provide significantly further increased therapeutic effectiveness over the use of cyclopamine alone or a corticosteroid alone.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine, a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid known for over thirty years, for the treatment of psoriasis and achievement of rapid clearance of the psoriatic skin lesions together with the reversion of the histopathological signs of disease to normalcy with no detectable side effects. The cyclopamine-induced clearance of psoriatic lesions from the skin of patients is associated with the causation of cellular differentiation in lesional epidermis and with the rapid disappearance of CD4(+) lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells from lesional skin. Therapeutic compositions comprising of cyclopamine and a corticosteroid and/or the pre-treatment of lesions with a corticosteroid provide significantly further increased therapeutic effectiveness over the use of cyclopamine alone or a corticosteroid alone.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine, a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid known for over thirty years, for the treatment of psoriasis and achievement of rapid clearance of the psoriatic skin lesions together with the reversion of the histopathological signs of disease to normalcy with no detectable side effects. The cyclopamine-induced clearance of psoriatic lesions from the skin of patients is associated with the causation of cellular differentiation in lesional epidermis and with the rapid disappearance of CD4(+) lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells from lesional skin. Therapeutic compositions comprising of cyclopamine and a corticosteroid and/or the pre-treatment of lesions with a corticosteroid provide significantly further increased therapeutic effectiveness over the use of cyclopamine alone or a corticosteroid alone.

Abstract: Cyclopamine or a similarly specific inhibitor of Hedgehog/Smoothened (Hh/Smo) signaling can be used for obtaining decrease of pigmentation of hyperpigmented skin areas.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine, a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid known for over thirty years, for the treatment of psoriasis and achievement of rapid clearance of the psoriatic skin lesions together with the reversion of the histopathological signs of disease to normalcy with no detectable side effects. The cyclopamine-induced clearance of psoriatic lesions from the skin of patients is associated with the causation of cellular differentiation in lesional epidermis and with the rapid disappearance of CD4(+) lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells from lesional skin. Therapeutic compositions comprising of cyclopamine and a corticosteroid and/or the pre-treatment of lesions with a corticosteroid provide significantly further increased therapeutic effectiveness over the use of cyclopamine alone or a corticosteroid alone.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine in vivo on basal cell carcinomas (BCC's) to achieve therapeutic effect by causing differentiation of the tumor cells and, at the same time, apoptotic death and removal of these tumor cells while preserving the normal tissue cells, including the undifferentiated cells of the normal epidermal basal layer and hair follicles. Causation of apoptosis by cyclopamine is by a non-genotoxic mechanism and thus unlike the radiation therapy and most of the currently used cancer chemotherapeutics which act by causing DNA-damage. These novel effects, previously unachieved by a cancer chemotherapeutic, make the use of cyclopamine highly desirable in cancer therapy, in the treatment of BCC's and other tumors that use the hedgehog/smoothened signal transduction pathway for proliferation and prevention of apoptosis.

Abstract: This invention concerns the use of cyclopamine, a naturally occurring steroidal alkaloid known for over thirty years, for the treatment of psoriasis and achievement of rapid clearance of the psoriatic skin lesions together with the reversion of the histopathological signs of disease to normalcy with no detectable side effects. The cyclopamine-induced clearance of psoriatic lesions from the skin of patients is associated with the causation of cellular differentiation in lesional epidermis and with the rapid disappearance of CD4(+) lymphocytes and other inflammatory cells from lesional skin. Therapeutic compositions comprising of cyclopamine and a corticosteroid and/or the pre-treatment of lesions with a corticosteroid provide significantly further increased therapeutic effectiveness over the use of cyclopamine alone or a corticosteroid alone.