Patent ID: 8623908

Claim:
A method of treating a condition in which inhibition of interleukin-1β-converting enzyme is beneficial, the method comprising administering to a subject in need thereof a therapeutically effective amount of at least one tellurium-containing compound selected from the group consisting of tellurium dioxide (TeO 2 ), a complex of TeO 2 , a compound having general Formula I: a compound having general Formula II: and a compound having general Formula III: wherein: each of t, u and v is independently 0 or 1; Y is selected from the group consisting of ammonium, phosphonium, potassium, sodium and lithium; X is a halogen atom; and each of R 1 -R 14 is independently selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, hydroxyalkyl, hydroxy, thiohydroxy, alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, alkoxy, thioalkoxy, halogen, haloalkyl, carboxy, carbonyl, alkylcarbonylalkyl, carboxyalkyl, acyl, amide, cyano, N-monoalkylamidoalkyl, N,N-dialkylamidoalkyl, cyanoalkyl, alkoxyalkyl, carbamyl, cycloalkyl, heteroalicyclic, sulfonyl, sulfinyl, sulfate, amine, aryl, heteroaryl, phosphate, phosphonate and sulfoneamido, and the condition in which inhibition of interleukin-1β-converting enzyme is beneficial is selected from the group consisting of an excess dietary alcohol intake disease, uveitis, inflammatory peritonitis, osteoarthritis, pancreatitis, asthma, adult respiratory distress syndrome, glomerulonephritis, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, chronic thyroiditis, Grave's disease, autoimmune hemolytic anemia, autoimmune neutropenia, thrombocytopenia, chronic active hepatitis, myasthenia gravis, inflammatory bowel disease, Crohn's disease, atopic dermatitis, scarring, graft vs host disease, organ transplant rejection, organ apoptosis after burn injury, osteoporosis, leukemia or a related disorder, myelodysplastic syndrome, multiple myeloma-related bone disorder, acute myelogenous leukemia, chronic myelogenous leukemia, metastatic melanoma, Kaposi's sarcoma, multiple myeloma, haemorrhagic shock, sepsis, septic shock, a burn, Shigellosis, Huntington's disease, Kennedy's disease, prion disease, cerebral ischemia, epilepsy, myocardial ischemia, acute and chronic heart disease, myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, atherosclerosis, coronary artery bypass graft, spinal muscular atrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, HIV-related encephalitis, aging, neurological damage due to stroke, ulcerative colitis, hepatitis-B, hepatitis-C, hepatitis-G, yellow fever, dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis, renal disease, polycystic kidney disease, HIV infection, tuberculosis, any of various forms of cancer, organ failure, and meningitis.