Current Drug Targets - Volume 6, Issue 3, 2005

This review article provides an overview on the most recent advances on the role of ErbB receptors and growth factors of the epidermal growth factor (EGF)-family of peptides in cancer pathogenesis and progression. The ErbB tyrosine kinases and the EGF-like peptides form a complex system. In fact, the interactions occurring between receptors and ligands of these families affect the type and the duration of the intrac Read More

Specific and reversible EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) such as gefitinib and erlotinib are clinically active in advanced or metastatic NSCLC and both are approved in various countries for the treatment of patients that failed prior chemotherapy. Erlotinib has also prolonged survival in pancreatic cancer patients when added to gemcitabine and regulatory approval in this disease is being sought. Additional promising acti Read More

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR, HER1) autocrine pathway contributes to a number of highly relevant processes in cancer development and progression, including cell proliferation, regulation of apoptotic cell death, angiogenesis and metastatic spread. The crucial role that EGFR plays in human cancers has led to an extensive search for selective inhibitors of its signaling pathway. The results of a large b Read More

Cellular receptors for the Epidermal Growth Factor are considered important targets for the experimental treatment of human cancer. Monoclonal antibodies as well as small tyrosine kinase inhibitors have been developed and have undergone extensive evaluation in preclinical and clinical studies. Most of these studies have been conceived on the general idea that epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) plays a critical rol Read More

Cell proliferation, differentiation, and survival are regulated by a number of extracellular hormones, growth factors, and cytokines in complex organisms. The transduction of the signals by these factors from the outside to the nucleus often requires the presence of small intracellular proteins (i.e. ras and other small G proteins) that are linked to the plasma membrane through a isoprenyl residue that functions as hydr Read More

Cell cycle kinases are comprised of cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks), non-Cdk kinases such as Plk-1 and Aurora and checkpoint proteins such as Chk1 and Chk2. Though ubiquitous to dividing cells, many cell cycle kinases are amplified or over-expressed in malignancy and are potential targets for anti-cancer therapies. Cdk inhibiting drugs (such as flavopiridol, UCN-01, E7070, R-Roscovitine and BMS-387032) have shown preclini Read More

In spite of the improvement of conventional medical therapy for cancer treatment, the impact on cancer related mortality in the last ten years has been modest especially for advanced disease in adults. On the other hand, understanding of molecular events underlining tumor development lead to the definition of new molecular targets for novel anti-tumor therapeutical approaches. On this regard, several biotechnology products Read More

Aminoglycosides are a class of clinically important antibiotics used in the treatment of infections caused by Gram-positive and Gram-negative organisms. They are bactericidal, targeting the bacterial ribosome, where they bind to the A-site and disrupt protein synthesis. Antibiotic resistance is a growing problem for all classes of anti-infective agents. One of the first groups of antibiotics to encounter the challenge of resistanc Read More

To achieve effective drug concentration at the intended site for a sufficient period of time is a requisite desired for many drug formulations. For drugs intended to ocular delivery, its poor bioavailability is due to pre-corneal factors. Most ocular diseases are treated by topical drug application in the form of solution, suspension and ointment. However, such dosage forms are no longer sufficient to combat some ocular diseases. Read More