Eosinophils as a pharmacological target for the treatment of allergic diseases

• Targeting eosinophils: for treatment of allergy and other Eos-associated disorders.
• Strategies are: inhibition of eosinophil maturation and functional activities.
• Future approaches: Blocking activation and stimulating inhibitory receptors.
• Patient phenotypic characterization should optimize pharmacological treatment.

Eosinophils are innate immune cells and active players in inflammatory responses. Their activation and increased levels in the blood and at specific sites are associated with parasitic infections and several inflammatory conditions, notably allergic diseases in which eosinophils are considered to be damaging cells. Intervention targeting eosinophils is thought to prevent and/or limit irreversible organ damage and other eosinophil-associated disorders like hypereosinophilic syndromes, some cancers and autoimmune diseases.Several eosinophil-targeted therapeutic agents which block specific steps in eosinophil differentiation, migration and activation have recently been developed, showing encouraging results and new insights into their specific role in allergy. Here, we review some potentially effective drug compounds, their drawbacks and future prospective focusing on allergic diseases.