Drug Repositioning

"drug repositioning" OR "drug repurposing"; +8 new citations

Thu, 2017-02-09 07:29

8 new pubmed citations were retrieved for your search. Click on the search hyperlink below to display the complete search results:

"drug repositioning" OR "drug repurposing"

These pubmed results were generated on 2017/02/09

PubMed comprises more than millions of citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations may include links to full-text content from PubMed Central and publisher web sites.

Categories: Literature Watch

Genome-wide association analyses for lung function and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease identify new loci and potential druggable targets.

Tue, 2017-02-07 07:00

Genome-wide association analyses for lung function and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease identify new loci and potential druggable targets.

Nat Genet. 2017 Feb 06;:

Authors: Wain LV, Shrine N, Artigas MS, Erzurumluoglu AM, Noyvert B, Bossini-Castillo L, Obeidat M, Henry AP, Portelli MA, Hall RJ, Billington CK, Rimington TL, Fenech AG, John C, Blake T, Jackson VE, Allen RJ, Prins BP, Understanding Society Scientific Group, Campbell A, Porteous DJ, Jarvelin MR, Wielscher M, James AL, Hui J, Wareham NJ, Zhao JH, Wilson JF, Joshi PK, Stubbe B, Rawal R, Schulz H, Imboden M, Probst-Hensch NM, Karrasch S, Gieger C, Deary IJ, Harris SE, Marten J, Rudan I, Enroth S, Gyllensten U, Kerr SM, Polasek O, Kähönen M, Surakka I, Vitart V, Hayward C, Lehtimäki T, Raitakari OT, Evans DM, Henderson AJ, Pennell CE, Wang CA, Sly PD, Wan ES, Busch R, Hobbs BD, Litonjua AA, Sparrow DW, Gulsvik A, Bakke PS, Crapo JD, Beaty TH, Hansel NN, Mathias RA, Ruczinski I, Barnes KC, Bossé Y, Joubert P, van den Berge M, Brandsma CA, Paré PD, Sin DD, Nickle DC, Hao K, Gottesman O, Dewey FE, Bruse SE, Carey DJ, Kirchner HL, Geisinger-Regeneron DiscovEHR Collaboration, Jonsson S, Thorleifsson G, Jonsdottir I, Gislason T, Stefansson K, Schurmann C, Nadkarni G, Bottinger EP, Loos RJ, Walters RG, Chen Z, Millwood IY, Vaucher J, Kurmi OP, Li L, Hansell AL, Brightling C, Zeggini E, Cho MH, Silverman EK, Sayers I, Trynka G, Morris AP, Strachan DP, Hall IP, Tobin MD

Abstract
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by reduced lung function and is the third leading cause of death globally. Through genome-wide association discovery in 48,943 individuals, selected from extremes of the lung function distribution in UK Biobank, and follow-up in 95,375 individuals, we increased the yield of independent signals for lung function from 54 to 97. A genetic risk score was associated with COPD susceptibility (odds ratio per 1 s.d. of the risk score (∼6 alleles) (95% confidence interval) = 1.24 (1.20-1.27), P = 5.05 × 10(-49)), and we observed a 3.7-fold difference in COPD risk between individuals in the highest and lowest genetic risk score deciles in UK Biobank. The 97 signals show enrichment in genes for development, elastic fibers and epigenetic regulation pathways. We highlight targets for drugs and compounds in development for COPD and asthma (genes in the inositol phosphate metabolism pathway and CHRM3) and describe targets for potential drug repositioning from other clinical indications.

PMID: 28166213 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

CaV channels and cancer: canonical functions indicate benefits of repurposed drugs as cancer therapeutics.

Tue, 2017-02-07 07:00
Related Articles

CaV channels and cancer: canonical functions indicate benefits of repurposed drugs as cancer therapeutics.

Eur Biophys J. 2016 Oct;45(7):621-633

Authors: Buchanan PJ, McCloskey KD

Abstract
The importance of ion channels in the hallmarks of many cancers is increasingly recognised. This article reviews current knowledge of the expression of members of the voltage-gated calcium channel family (CaV) in cancer at the gene and protein level and discusses their potential functional roles. The ten members of the CaV channel family are classified according to expression of their pore-forming α-subunit; moreover, co-expression of accessory α2δ, β and γ confers a spectrum of biophysical characteristics including voltage dependence of activation and inactivation, current amplitude and activation/inactivation kinetics. CaV channels have traditionally been studied in excitable cells including neurones, smooth muscle, skeletal muscle and cardiac cells, and drugs targeting the channels are used in the treatment of hypertension and epilepsy. There is emerging evidence that several CaV channels are differentially expressed in cancer cells compared to their normal counterparts. Interestingly, a number of CaV channels also have non-canonical functions and are involved in transcriptional regulation of the expression of other proteins including potassium channels. Pharmacological studies show that CaV canonical function contributes to the fundamental biology of proliferation, cell-cycle progression and apoptosis. This raises the intriguing possibility that calcium channel blockers, approved for the treatment of other conditions, could be repurposed to treat particular cancers. Further research will reveal the full extent of both the canonical and non-canonical functions of CaV channels in cancer and whether calcium channel blockers are beneficial in cancer treatment.

PMID: 27342111 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Categories: Literature Watch

"drug repositioning" OR "drug repurposing"; +8 new citations

Mon, 2017-02-06 06:48

8 new pubmed citations were retrieved for your search. Click on the search hyperlink below to display the complete search results:

"drug repositioning" OR "drug repurposing"

These pubmed results were generated on 2017/02/06

PubMed comprises more than millions of citations for biomedical literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. Citations may include links to full-text content from PubMed Central and publisher web sites.

Categories: Literature Watch

Drug repurposing and therapeutic anti-microRNA predictions for inhibition of oxidized low-density lipoprotein-induced vascular smooth muscle cell-associated diseases.

Fri, 2017-02-03 18:04

Drug repurposing and therapeutic anti-microRNA predictions for inhibition of oxidized low-density lipoprotein-induced vascular smooth muscle cell-associated diseases.

J Bioinform Comput Biol. 2016 Dec 22;:1650043

Authors: Chen ST, Huang CH, Kok VC, Huang CF, Ciou JS, Tsai JJ, Kurubanjerdjit N, Ng KL

Abstract
Drug repurposing is a new method for disease treatments, which accelerates the identification of new uses for existing drugs with minimal side effects for patients. MicroRNA-based therapeutics are a class of drugs that have been used in gene therapy following the FDA's approval of the first anti-sense therapy. This study examines the effects of oxLDL on vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and identifies potential drugs and antimiRs for treating VSMC-associated diseases. The Connectivity Map (cMap) database is utilized to identify potential new uses of existing drugs. The success of the identifications was supported by MTT assay, clonogenic assay and clinical trial data. Specifically, 37 drugs, some of which are undergoing clinical trials, were identified. Three of the identified drugs exhibit IC50 activities. Among the 37 drugs' targets, three differentially expressed genes (DEGs) are identified as drug targets by using both the DrugBank and the NCBI PubChem Compound databases. Also, one DEG, DNMT1, which is regulated by 17 miRNAs, where these miRNAs are potential targets for developing antimiR-based miRNA therapy, is found.

PMID: 28150521 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

A Blockade of IGF Signaling Sensitizes Human Ovarian Cancer Cells to the Anthelmintic Niclosamide-Induced Anti-Proliferative and Anticancer Activities.

Fri, 2017-02-03 18:04
Related Articles

A Blockade of IGF Signaling Sensitizes Human Ovarian Cancer Cells to the Anthelmintic Niclosamide-Induced Anti-Proliferative and Anticancer Activities.

Cell Physiol Biochem. 2016;39(3):871-88

Authors: Deng Y, Wang Z, Zhang F, Qiao M, Yan Z, Wei Q, Wang J, Liu H, Fan J, Zou Y, Liao J, Hu X, Chen L, Yu X, Haydon RC, Luu HH, Qi H, He TC, Zhang J

Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIMS: Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy, and there is an unmet clinical need to develop new therapies. Although showing promising anticancer activity, Niclosamide may not be used as a monotherapy. We seek to investigate whether inhibiting IGF signaling potentiates Niclosamide's anticancer efficacy in human ovarian cancer cells.
METHODS: Cell proliferation and migration are assessed. Cell cycle progression and apoptosis are analyzed by flow cytometry. Inhibition of IGF signaling is accomplished by adenovirus-mediated expression of siRNAs targeting IGF-1R. Cancer-associated pathways are assessed using pathway-specific reporters. Subcutaneous xenograft model is used to determine anticancer activity.
RESULTS: We find that Niclosamide is highly effective on inhibiting cell proliferation, cell migration, and cell cycle progression, and inducing apoptosis in human ovarian cancer cells, possibly by targeting multiple signaling pathways involved in ELK1/SRF, AP-1, MYC/MAX and NFkB. Silencing IGF-1R exert a similar but weaker effect than that of Niclosamide's. However, silencing IGF-1R significantly sensitizes ovarian cancer cells to Niclosamide-induced anti-proliferative and anticancer activities both in vitro and in vivo.
CONCLUSION: Niclosamide as a repurposed anticancer agent may be more efficacious when combined with agents that target other signaling pathways such as IGF signaling in the treatment of human cancers including ovarian cancer.

PMID: 27497986 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Categories: Literature Watch

Sulforaphane Prevents Neuronal Apoptosis and Memory Impairment in Diabetic Rats.

Fri, 2017-02-03 18:04
Related Articles

Sulforaphane Prevents Neuronal Apoptosis and Memory Impairment in Diabetic Rats.

Cell Physiol Biochem. 2016;39(3):901-7

Authors: Wang G, Fang H, Zhen Y, Xu G, Tian J, Zhang Y, Zhang D, Zhang G, Xu J, Zhang Z, Qiu M, Ma Y, Zhang H, Zhang X

Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIMS: To explore the effects of sulforaphane (SFN) on neuronal apoptosis in hippocampus and memory impairment in diabetic rats.
METHODS: Thirty male rats were randomly divided into normal control, diabetic model and SFN treatment groups (N = 10 in each group). Streptozotocin (STZ) was applied to establish diabetic model. Water Morris maze task was applied to test learning and memory. Tunel assaying was used to detect apoptosis in hippocampus. The expressions of Caspase-3 and myeloid cell leukemia 1(MCL-1) were detected by western blotting. Neurotrophic factor levels and AKT/GSK3β pathway were also detected.
RESULTS: Compared with normal control, learning and memory were apparently impaired, with up-regulation of Caspase-3 and down-regulation of MCL-1 in diabetic rats. Apoptotic neurons were also found in CA1 region after diabetic modeling. By contrast, SFN treatment prevented the memory impairment, decreased the apoptosis of hippocampal neurons. SFN also attenuated the abnormal expression of Caspase-3 and MCL-1 in diabetic model. Mechanically, SFN treatment reversed diabetic modeling-induced decrease of p-Akt, p-GSK3β, NGF and BDNF expressions.
CONCLUSION: SFN could prevent the memory impairment and apoptosis of hippocampal neurons in diabetic rat. The possible mechanism was related to the regulation of neurotropic factors and Akt/GSK3β pathway.

PMID: 27497670 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Categories: Literature Watch

Anthelminthic drug niclosamide sensitizes the responsiveness of cervical cancer cells to paclitaxel via oxidative stress-mediated mTOR inhibition.

Wed, 2017-02-01 08:24

Anthelminthic drug niclosamide sensitizes the responsiveness of cervical cancer cells to paclitaxel via oxidative stress-mediated mTOR inhibition.

Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2017 Jan 27;:

Authors: Chen L, Wang L, Shen H, Lin H, Li D

Abstract
Drug repurposing represents an alternative therapeutic strategy to cancer treatment. The potent anti-cancer activities of a FDA-approved anthelminthic drug niclosamide have been demonstrated in various cancers. However, whether niclosamide is active against cervical cancer are unknown. In this study, we investigated the effects of niclosamide alone and its combination with paclitaxel in cervical cancer cells in vitro and in vivo. We found that niclosamide significantly inhibited proliferation and induced apoptosis of a panel of cervical cancer cell lines, regardless of their cellular origin and genetic pattern. Niclosamide also inhibited tumor growth in cervical cancer xenograft mouse model. Importantly, niclosamide significantly enhanced the responsiveness of cervical cancer cell to paclitaxel. We further found that niclosamide induced mitochondrial dysfunctions via inhibiting mitochondrial respiration, complex I activity and ATP generation, which led to oxidative stress. ROS scavenge agent N-acetyl-l-cysteine (NAC) completely reversed the effects of niclosamide in increasing cellular ROS, inhibiting proliferation and inducing apoptosis, suggesting that oxidative stress induction is the mechanism of action of niclosamide in cervical cancer cells. In addition, niclosamide significantly inhibited mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway in cervical cancer cells and its inhibitory effect on mTOR is modulated by oxidative stress. Our work suggests that niclosamide is a useful addition to the treatment armamentarium for cervical cancer and induction of oxidative stress may be a potential therapeutic strategy in cervical cancer.

PMID: 28137584 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

A Systematic Framework for Drug Repositioning from Integrated Omics and Drug Phenotype Profiles Using Pathway-Drug Network.

Sat, 2017-01-28 07:20
Related Articles

A Systematic Framework for Drug Repositioning from Integrated Omics and Drug Phenotype Profiles Using Pathway-Drug Network.

Biomed Res Int. 2016;2016:7147039

Authors: Jadamba E, Shin M

Abstract
Drug repositioning offers new clinical indications for old drugs. Recently, many computational approaches have been developed to repurpose marketed drugs in human diseases by mining various of biological data including disease expression profiles, pathways, drug phenotype expression profiles, and chemical structure data. However, despite encouraging results, a comprehensive and efficient computational drug repositioning approach is needed that includes the high-level integration of available resources. In this study, we propose a systematic framework employing experimental genomic knowledge and pharmaceutical knowledge to reposition drugs for a specific disease. Specifically, we first obtain experimental genomic knowledge from disease gene expression profiles and pharmaceutical knowledge from drug phenotype expression profiles and construct a pathway-drug network representing a priori known associations between drugs and pathways. To discover promising candidates for drug repositioning, we initialize node labels for the pathway-drug network using identified disease pathways and known drugs associated with the phenotype of interest and perform network propagation in a semisupervised manner. To evaluate our method, we conducted some experiments to reposition 1309 drugs based on four different breast cancer datasets and verified the results of promising candidate drugs for breast cancer by a two-step validation procedure. Consequently, our experimental results showed that the proposed framework is quite useful approach to discover promising candidates for breast cancer treatment.

PMID: 28127549 [PubMed - in process]

Categories: Literature Watch

Six psychotropics for pre-symptomatic & early Alzheimer's (MCI), Parkinson's, and Huntington's disease modification.

Fri, 2017-01-27 07:07
Related Articles

Six psychotropics for pre-symptomatic & early Alzheimer's (MCI), Parkinson's, and Huntington's disease modification.

Neural Regen Res. 2016 Nov;11(11):1712-1726

Authors: Lauterbach EC

Abstract
The quest for neuroprotective drugs to slow the progression of neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs), including Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and Huntington's disease (HD), has been largely unrewarding. Preclinical evidence suggests that repurposing quetiapine, lithium, valproate, fluoxetine, donepezil, and memantine for early and pre-symptomatic disease-modification in NDDs may be promising and can spare regulatory barriers. The literature of these psychotropics in early stage and pre-symptomatic AD, PD, and HD is reviewed and propitious findings follow. Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) phase of AD: salutary human randomized controlled trial findings for low-dose lithium and, in selected patients, donepezil await replication. Pre-symptomatic AD: human epidemiological data indicate that lithium reduces AD risk. Animal model studies (AMS) reveal encouraging results for quetiapine, lithium, donepezil, and memantine. Early PD: valproate AMS findings show promise. Pre-symptomatic PD: lithium and valproate AMS findings are encouraging. Early HD: uncontrolled clinical data indicate non-progression with lithium, fluoxetine, donepezil, and memantine. Pre-symptomatic HD: lithium and valproate are auspicious in AMS. Many other promising findings awaiting replication (valproate in MCI; lithium, valproate, fluoxetine in pre-symptomatic AD; lithium in early PD; lithium, valproate, fluoxetine in pre-symptomatic PD; donepezil in early HD; lithium, fluoxetine, memantine in pre-symptomatic HD) are reviewed. Dose- and stage-dependent effects are considered. Suggestions for signal-enhancement in human trials are provided for each NDD stage.

PMID: 28123400 [PubMed - in process]

Categories: Literature Watch

Ex vivo drug response profiling detects recurrent sensitivity patterns in drug resistant ALL.

Fri, 2017-01-27 07:07
Related Articles

Ex vivo drug response profiling detects recurrent sensitivity patterns in drug resistant ALL.

Blood. 2017 Jan 25;:

Authors: Frismantas V, Dobay MP, Rinaldi A, Tchinda J, Dunn SH, Kunz J, Richter-Pechanska P, Marovca B, Pail O, Jenni S, Diaz-Flores E, Chang BH, Brown TJ, Collins RH, Uhrig S, Balasubramanian GP, Bandapalli OR, Higi S, Eugster S, Voegeli P, Delorenzi M, Cario G, Loh ML, Schrappe M, Stanulla M, Kulozik AE, Muckenthaler MU, Saha V, Irving JA, Meisel R, Radimerski T, Von Stackelberg A, Eckert C, Tyner JW, Horvath P, Bornhauser BC, Bourquin JP

Abstract
Drug sensitivity and resistance testing on diagnostic leukemia samples should provide important functional information to guide actionable target and biomarker discovery. We provide proof of concept data by profiling 60 drugs on 68 acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) samples mostly from resistant disease in co-cultures on bone marrow stromal cells. Patient-derived xenografts retained the original pattern of mutations found in the matched patient material. Stromal co-culture did not prevent leukemia cell cycle activity, while a specific sensitivity profile to cell cycle related drugs identified samples with higher cell proliferation both in vitro and in vivo as leukemia xenografts. In cases with refractory relapses, individual patterns of marked drug resistance, but also exceptional responses to new agents of immediate clinical relevance were detected. The BCL2-inhibitor venetoclax was highly active below 10 nM in BCP-ALL subsets including MLL-AF4 and TCF3-HLF ALL, and in some T-ALLs, predicting in vivo activity as a single agent and in combination with dexamethasone and vincristine. Unexpected sensitivity to dasatinib with IC50 values below 20 nM was detected in two independent T-ALL cohorts, which correlated with similar cytotoxic activity of the SRC Inhibitor KX2-391 and inhibition of SRC phosphorylation. A patient with refractory T-ALL was treated with dasatinib based on drug profiling information and achieved a five-month remission. Thus, drug profiling captures disease-relevant features and unexpected sensitivity to relevant drugs, which warrants further exploration of this functional assay in the context of clinical trials in order to develop drug repurposing strategies for patients with urgent medical needs.

PMID: 28122742 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

Pharmacophore-based repositioning of approved drugs as novel S. aureus NorA efflux pump inhibitors.

Wed, 2017-01-25 06:33

Pharmacophore-based repositioning of approved drugs as novel S. aureus NorA efflux pump inhibitors.

J Med Chem. 2017 Jan 24;:

Authors: Astolfi A, Felicetti T, Iraci N, Manfroni G, Massari S, Pietrella D, Tabarrini O, Kaatz GW, Barreca ML, Sabatini S, Cecchetti V

Abstract
An intriguing opportunity to address antimicrobial resistance is represented by the inhibition of efflux pumps. Focusing on NorA, the most important efflux pump of Staphylococcus aureus, an efflux pump inhibitors (EPIs) library was used for ligand-based pharmacophore modeling studies. Exploiting the obtained models, an in silico drug repositioning approach allowed for the identification of novel and potent NorA EPIs.

PMID: 28117588 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

Old-School Chemotherapy in Immunotherapeutic Combination in Cancer, A Low-cost Drug Repurposed.

Wed, 2017-01-25 06:33
Related Articles

Old-School Chemotherapy in Immunotherapeutic Combination in Cancer, A Low-cost Drug Repurposed.

Cancer Immunol Res. 2016 May;4(5):377-82

Authors: Abu Eid R, Razavi GS, Mkrtichyan M, Janik J, Khleif SN

Abstract
Cancer immunotherapy has proven to be a potent treatment modality. Although often successful in generating antitumor immune responses, cancer immunotherapy is frequently hindered by tumor immune-escape mechanisms. Among immunosuppressive strategies within the tumor microenvironment, suppressive immune regulatory cells play a key role in promoting tumor progression through inhibiting the effector arm of the immune response. Targeting these suppressive cells can greatly enhance antitumor immune therapies, hence augmenting a highly effective therapeutic antitumor response. Several approaches are being tested to enhance the effector arm of the immune system while simultaneously inhibiting the suppressor arm. Some of these approaches are none other than traditional drugs repurposed as immune modulators. Cyclophosphamide, an old-school chemotherapeutic agent used across a wide range of malignancies, was found to be a potent immune modulator that targets suppressive regulatory immune cells within the tumor microenvironment while enhancing effector cells. Preclinical and clinical findings have confirmed the ability of low doses of cyclophosphamide to selectively deplete regulatory T cells while enhancing effector and memory cytotoxic T cells within the tumor microenvironment. These immune effects translate to suppressed tumor growth and enhanced survival, evidence of antitumor therapeutic efficacy. This article discusses the reincarnation of cyclophosphamide as an immune modulator that augments novel immunotherapeutic approaches. Cancer Immunol Res; 4(5); 377-82. ©2016 AACR.

PMID: 27196429 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Categories: Literature Watch

Repurposing Resveratrol and Fluconazole To Modulate Human Cytochrome P450-Mediated Arachidonic Acid Metabolism.

Tue, 2017-01-24 06:21
Related Articles

Repurposing Resveratrol and Fluconazole To Modulate Human Cytochrome P450-Mediated Arachidonic Acid Metabolism.

Mol Pharm. 2016 Apr 04;13(4):1278-88

Authors: El-Sherbeni AA, El-Kadi AO

Abstract
Cytochrome P450 (P450) enzymes metabolize arachidonic acid (AA) to several biologically active epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs) and hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acids (HETEs). Repurposing clinically-approved drugs could provide safe and readily available means to control EETs and HETEs levels in humans. Our aim was to determine how to significantly and selectively modulate P450-AA metabolism in humans by clinically-approved drugs. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry was used to determine the formation of 15 AA metabolites by human recombinant P450 enzymes, as well as human liver and kidney microsomes. CYP2C19 showed the highest EET-forming activity, while CYP1B1 and CYP2C8 showed the highest midchain HETE-forming activities. CYP1A1 and CYP4 showed the highest subterminal- and 20-HETE-forming activity, respectively. Resveratrol and fluconazole produced the most selective and significant modulation of hepatic P450-AA metabolism, comparable to investigational agents. Monte Carlo simulations showed that 90% of human population would experience a decrease by 6-22%, 16-39%, and 16-35% in 16-, 18-, and 20-HETE formation, respectively, after 2.5 g daily of resveratrol, and by 22-31% and 14-23% in 8,9- and 14,15-EET formation after 50 mg of fluconazole. In conclusion, clinically-approved drugs can provide selective and effective means to modulate P450-AA metabolism, comparable to investigational drugs. Resveratrol and fluconazole are good candidates to be repurposed as new P450-based treatments.

PMID: 26918316 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Categories: Literature Watch

Affordable orphan drugs: A role for not-for-profit organisations.

Sun, 2017-01-22 08:57
Related Articles

Affordable orphan drugs: A role for not-for-profit organisations.

Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2017 Jan 20;:

Authors: Davies EH, Fulton E, Brook D, Hughes DA

Abstract
The success of the Regulation on Orphan Medicinal Products in the European Union is evidenced by the 127 orphan drugs that have had market authorisation since 2000. However the incentives aimed to stimulate research and development have had the unintended consequence of increasing drug cost, resulting in many orphan drugs not being cost-effective. Orphan drugs command an increasing share of the pharmaceutical market and account for a disproportionate amount of healthcare expenditure. Orphan drug ownership by socially motivated, not-for-profit organisations may facilitate access to more affordable orphan drugs, for the benefit of patients and healthcare systems alike. Using repurposed drugs as a paradigm, this review navigates the regulatory hurdles, describes the legal context and identifies funding opportunities, in a bid to facilitate and encourage not-for-profit organisations to lead on the development of affordable orphan drugs.

PMID: 28109021 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

Pharmacophore-based screening and drug repurposing exemplified on glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibitors.

Sun, 2017-01-22 08:57
Related Articles

Pharmacophore-based screening and drug repurposing exemplified on glycogen synthase kinase-3 inhibitors.

Mol Divers. 2017 Jan 21;:

Authors: Crisan L, Avram S, Pacureanu L

Abstract
The current study was conducted to elaborate a novel pharmacophore model to accurately map selective glycogen synthase kinase-3 (GSK-3) inhibitors, and perform virtual screening and drug repurposing. Pharmacophore modeling was developed using PHASE on a data set of 203 maleimides. Two benchmarking validation data sets with focus on selectivity were assembled using ChEMBL and PubChem GSK-3 confirmatory assays. A drug repurposing experiment linking pharmacophore matching with drug information originating from multiple data sources was performed. A five-point pharmacophore model was built consisting of a hydrogen bond acceptor (A), hydrogen bond donor (D), hydrophobic (H), and two rings (RR). An atom-based 3D quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) model showed good correlative and satisfactory predictive abilities (training set [Formula: see text]; test set: [Formula: see text]; whole data set: stability [Formula: see text]). Virtual screening experiments revealed that selective GSK-3 inhibitors are ranked preferentially by Hypo-1, but fail to retrieve nonselective compounds. The pharmacophore and 3D QSAR models can provide assistance to design novel, potential GSK-3 inhibitors with high potency and selectivity pattern, with potential application for the treatment of GSK-3-driven diseases. A class of purine nucleoside antileukemic drugs was identified as potential inhibitor of GSK-3, suggesting the reassessment of the target range of these drugs.

PMID: 28108896 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

A physarum-inspired prize-collecting steiner tree approach to identify subnetworks for drug repositioning.

Sat, 2017-01-21 08:45
Related Articles

A physarum-inspired prize-collecting steiner tree approach to identify subnetworks for drug repositioning.

BMC Syst Biol. 2016 Dec 05;10(Suppl 5):128

Authors: Sun Y, Hameed PN, Verspoor K, Halgamuge S

Abstract
BACKGROUND: Drug repositioning can reduce the time, costs and risks of drug development by identifying new therapeutic effects for known drugs. It is challenging to reposition drugs as pharmacological data is large and complex. Subnetwork identification has already been used to simplify the visualization and interpretation of biological data, but it has not been applied to drug repositioning so far. In this paper, we fill this gap by proposing a new Physarum-inspired Prize-Collecting Steiner Tree algorithm to identify subnetworks for drug repositioning.
RESULTS: Drug Similarity Networks (DSN) are generated using the chemical, therapeutic, protein, and phenotype features of drugs. In DSNs, vertex prizes and edge costs represent the similarities and dissimilarities between drugs respectively, and terminals represent drugs in the cardiovascular class, as defined in the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical classification system. A new Physarum-inspired Prize-Collecting Steiner Tree algorithm is proposed in this paper to identify subnetworks. We apply both the proposed algorithm and the widely-used GW algorithm to identify subnetworks in our 18 generated DSNs. In these DSNs, our proposed algorithm identifies subnetworks with an average Rand Index of 81.1%, while the GW algorithm can only identify subnetworks with an average Rand Index of 64.1%. We select 9 subnetworks with high Rand Index to find drug repositioning opportunities. 10 frequently occurring drugs in these subnetworks are identified as candidates to be repositioned for cardiovascular diseases.
CONCLUSIONS: We find evidence to support previous discoveries that nitroglycerin, theophylline and acarbose may be able to be repositioned for cardiovascular diseases. Moreover, we identify seven previously unknown drug candidates that also may interact with the biological cardiovascular system. These discoveries show our proposed Prize-Collecting Steiner Tree approach as a promising strategy for drug repositioning.

PMID: 28105946 [PubMed - in process]

Categories: Literature Watch

Applications of chemogenomic library screening in drug discovery.

Sat, 2017-01-21 08:45
Related Articles

Applications of chemogenomic library screening in drug discovery.

Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2017 Jan 20;:

Authors: Jones LH, Bunnage ME

Abstract
The allure of phenotypic screening, combined with the industry preference for target-based approaches, has prompted the development of innovative chemical biology technologies that facilitate the identification of new therapeutic targets for accelerated drug discovery. A chemogenomic library is a collection of selective small-molecule pharmacological agents, and a hit from such a set in a phenotypic screen suggests that the annotated target or targets of that pharmacological agent may be involved in perturbing the observable phenotype. In this Review, we describe opportunities for chemogenomic screening to considerably expedite the conversion of phenotypic screening projects into target-based drug discovery approaches. Other applications are explored, including drug repositioning, predictive toxicology and the discovery of novel pharmacological modalities.

PMID: 28104905 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Categories: Literature Watch

Continuous Suprascapular Nerve Block With a Perineural Catheter for Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty Rescue Analgesia in a Patient With Severe Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Fri, 2017-01-20 08:33
Related Articles

Continuous Suprascapular Nerve Block With a Perineural Catheter for Reverse Shoulder Arthroplasty Rescue Analgesia in a Patient With Severe Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

A A Case Rep. 2016 Jul 15;7(2):37-40

Authors: Careskey M, Naidu R

Abstract
Reverse open shoulder arthroplasty requires a comprehensive analgesic plan involving regional anesthesia. The commonly performed interscalene brachial plexus blockade confers a high likelihood of diaphragmatic paralysis via phrenic nerve palsy, making this option riskier in patients with limited pulmonary reserve. Continuous blockade of the suprascapular nerve, a more distal branch of the C5 and C6 nerve roots, may be a viable alternative. We report a successful case of the use of a suprascapular nerve block with continuous programmed intermittent bolus perineural analgesia in a patient with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease who underwent reverse open shoulder arthroplasty.

PMID: 27258178 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Categories: Literature Watch

Extensions of indication throughout the drug product lifecycle: a quantitative analysis.

Fri, 2017-01-20 08:33
Related Articles

Extensions of indication throughout the drug product lifecycle: a quantitative analysis.

Drug Discov Today. 2016 Feb;21(2):348-55

Authors: Langedijk J, Whitehead CJ, Slijkerman DS, Leufkens HG, Schutjens MH, Mantel-Teeuwisse AK

Abstract
The marketing authorisation of the first generic product version is an important moment in a drug product lifecycle. The subsequently changed intellectual property protection prospects could affect the incentives for further drug development. We assessed the quantity and nature of extensions of indication of small molecule medicinal products authorised through the European Medicines Agency throughout the drug product lifecycle with special attention for the impact of the introduction of a first generic competitor. The majority (92.5%) of the extensions of indication was approved during the exclusivity period of the innovator product. Regulatory rethinking might be needed for a sustainable stimulation of extensions of indications in the post-generic period of a drug product lifecycle.

PMID: 26657087 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Categories: Literature Watch

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