ABSTRACT
Cyclosporin A is a noncytotoxic immunosuppressant that was first discovered in 1970. It has had a remarkable impact on modern medicine. Its initial use was for immunosuppression following organ and marrow transplantation and without this drug these procedures would not have become possible on anything approaching the scale on which they are currently undertaken. Subsequently, cyclosporin A has found applications in virtually all branches of medicine where autoimmune or inflammatory processes play a role in the pathology. Dermatologists, being somewhat conservative by nature, have not been quick to jump on this bandwagon. Although reports that cyclosporin A was effective in psoriasis began to appear in 1979, the first controlled trial was not published until 1986.
