Gell and Coombs’s classification divides allergies into four pathophysiological types: type I: anaphylaxis type II: antibody-mediated cytotoxic reactions type III: immune complex-mediated reactions and type IV: delayed type hypersensitivity. It is expected that NK-4 could be developed in more therapeutic strategies to treat many types of diseases, such as neurodegenerative and retinal degenerative diseases. All experimental data suggest that different kinds of utility of NK-4 in the treatment of diseases can be developed based on the various pharmacological properties of NK-4. The therapeutic effects of NK-4’s antioxidative and neuroprotective properties in animal models are now under development, and we hope to apply these pharmacological effects of NK-4 to the treatment of more diseases. Currently, NK-4, which is sold as an over-the-counter drug in drugstores, is approved for treating allergic diseases, loss of appetite, sleepiness, anemia, peripheral neuropathy, acute suppurative diseases, wounds, heat injuries, frostbite, and tinea pedis in Japan.

We review all therapeutic directions for the cyanine dye NK-4, as well as the pharmacological mechanism of NK-4 in animal models of related diseases. NK-4 plays a key role in the treatment of various diseases, such as in hay fever to expect anti-allergic effects, in bacterial infections and gum abscesses to expect anti-inflammatory effects, in scratches, cuts, and mouth sores from bites inside the mouth for enhanced wound healing, in herpes simplex virus (HSV)-1 infections for antiviral effects, and in peripheral nerve disease that causes tingling pain and numbness in hands and feet, while NK-4 is used also to expect antioxidative and neuroprotective effects.

Lumin skin care review