Current Drug Discovery Technologies - Volume 9, Issue 4, 2012

With an average life expectancy of 14 months, Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), is the most aggressive primary brain tumor. Our growing understanding of the immune system and its role in oncogenesis has helped develop cancer vaccines as a promising treatment modality against this disease. What follows is a comprehensive discussion on the history of immunotherapy and the various vaccine based therapies bein Read More

Gliomas are the most common primary brain tumors and result in dismal outcomes when present at high grades. Surgery is the first-line treatment, and maximum safe resection is recommended. However, the infiltrative nature of malignant gliomas makes complete resection difficult as tumor margins are unclear. The use of fluorescence to delineate tumor margins intraoperatively has emerged as a safe and effective Read More

Malignant glioma remains a disease with poor prognosis despite recent advances in the multidisciplinary care of this disease. Herein we review the evolution of and recent advances in radiation therapy for malignant glioma that have allowed for more targeted therapy, potentially improving efficacy while decreasing normal tissue toxicity. Current and emerging techniques are presented, including stereotactic radiotherapy an Read More

Brain function depends upon complex metabolic interactions amongst only a few different cell types, with astrocytes providing critical support for neurons. Astrocyte functions include buffering the extracellular space, providing substrates to neurons, interchanging glutamate and glutamine for synaptic transmission with neurons, and facilitating access to blood vessels. Whereas neurons possess highly oxidative metabolism and Read More

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) represents one of the most common aggressive types of primary brain tumors. Despite advances in surgical resection, novel neuroimaging procedures, and the most recent adjuvant radiotherapy and chemotherapy, the median survival after diagnosis is about 12-14 months. Targeting migrating GBM cells is a key research strategy in the fight against this devastating cancer. Though the va Read More

The blood brain barrier (BBB) poses a significant challenge for drug delivery of macromolecules into the brain. Convection-enhanced delivery (CED) circumvents the BBB through direct intracerebral infusion using a hydrostatic pressure gradient to transfer therapeutic compounds. The efficacy of CED is dependent on the distribution of the therapeutic agent to the targeted region. Here we present a review of convection enhanced Read More

Colon-targeted delivery of bioactives has recently gained importance in addressing specific needs in the therapy of colon based diseases. Many approaches have been attempted for the development of colon-specific delivery systems, with not much success in the past. With the advancement in the field of chronobiology, modern drug delivery approaches have elevated to a new concept of chronopharmacology i. Read More

Multi drug resistance and non specific targeting is a major problem with conventional therapy. To overcome this problem, nanoparticles (NPs) have emerged as an important tool to deliver conventional drugs, recombinant proteins, vaccines and more recently, nucleotides. NPs modify the drug release pattern, absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion (ADME) and therapeutic response. This review focuses on the potential o Read More