oa Editorial [Hot Topic: Advances and Current Perspectives in Medicinal Inorganic Chemistry (Guest Editor: D. Gambino D. Gambino)]

Medicinal Inorganic Chemistry is an area of growing interest. Metal compounds have demonstrated their participation in biological processes and their significance in both therapeutic and diagnostic medicine. Bioactivity of many organic drugs is dependent on the presence of metal ions in the biological media. Moreover, coordination of pharmacologically interesting metal ions to suitable ligands constitutes a tool to modulate biological properties of these ions. In addition, the coordination of organic drugs to metal ions commonly improves the original activity, leading in many cases to synergistic or additive effects, or at least to improvement of bioavailability. Consequently, the development of novel metal-based drugs is a current area of research and development in Medicinal Chemistry. In addition, Medicinal Inorganic Chemistry is also involved in the development of noninvasive means of assessing physiology and morphology of tissues and organs, leading to useful information for the diagnosis of disease and the follow-up of its evolution. Besides, Inorganic Chemistry knowledge can be used to treat metal ion overload diseases through the development of suitable metal ion chelating agents or to supplement elements that playing an essential role in living organisms show anomalous deficient levels generating disease. Current research and perspectives on many of these aspects will be included in different contributions of this thematic issue.