Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 14, Issue 28, 2007

The cation-independent mannose 6-phosphate receptor is a multifunctional protein which binds at the cell surface to two distinct classes of ligands, the mannose 6-phosphate (M6P) bearing proteins and IGF-II. Its major function is to bind and transport M6Penzymes to lysosomes, but it can also modulate the activity of a variety of extracellular M6P-glycoproteins (i.e., latent TGFβ precursor, urokinase-type plasminogen activator r Read More

There is much clinical evidence of a relationship between infectious disease and chronic liver disease. The consequences of this adverse association have been described and advances in the treatment and prophylaxis of infectious disease have had an important effect on the management of patients with chronic liver disease. The association between infectious disease and chronic liver disease involves altered cytokine produc Read More

Paclitaxel and related taxanes exhibit their anticancer activity by promoting tubulin polymerization and stabilizing microtubules, which results in mitotic G2/M arrest and apoptosis. The clinical success of paclitaxel in treating a wide array of tumor types has led to numerous efforts to identify novel natural products with paclitaxel-like mechanisms of action, but which may overcome some of the liabilities of the taxanes. Althoug Read More

Although cellular RNA should be subject to the same oxidative insults as DNA and other cellular macromolecules, oxidative damage to RNA has not been a major focus in investigating the magnitude and the biological consequences of the free radical damage. However, because RNA is mostly single-stranded and its bases are not protected by hydrogen bonding and are less protected by specific proteins, RNA may be more susc Read More

Preclinical studies carried out over the last seven years by our group have focused on the development of a group A streptococcal (GAS) vaccine based on the antiphagocytic bacterial surface M protein using the Lipid-Core Peptide (LCP) system. This synthetic peptide vaccine delivery system has several advantages over other delivery systems including its self-adjuvanting properties and the ability to incorporate multiple pepti Read More

Cognitive flexibility is the ability to adjust behavior to changes in the environment or task conditions. Previous research suggested that serotonin (5-HT) is involved in cognitive flexibility. Disturbed 5-HT functioning in animals, psychiatric patients and healthy volunteers leads to more rigid behavior. A well recognized method to manipulate levels of brain 5-HT is acute tryptophan depletion (ATD). This method induces a transient and r Read More

Tetrahydroprotoberberines (THPBs) represent a series of compounds extracted from the Chinese herb Corydalis ambigua and various species of Stephania. THPBs, dependent on the presence of hydroxyl groups in its structure, are divided into three types: nonhydroxyl- THPBs, monohydroxyl-THPBs and dihydroxyl-THPBs. THPBs are identified as a new category of dopamine receptor ligands. Among all THPBs, dihydroxyl-THPBs Read More

Acquired long QT syndrome caused by drugs that block the human ether-a-go-go-related-gene (hERG) K+ channel causes severe side effects and thus represents a major problem in clinical studies of drug candidates. Therefore, early prediction of hERG K+ channel affinity of drug candidates is becoming increasingly important in the drug discovery process. Both structure-based and ligand-based approaches have been undertak Read More

The calcium sensing receptor (CaR) is a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) that plays a fundamental role in serum calcium homeostasis. The CaR is expressed on the chief cells of the parathyroid gland and is responsible for controlling the secretion of parathyroid hormone (PTH). PTH acts on several organs including the bone, kidney, and intestine to tightly regulate the concentration of serum calcium. Substances other than c Read More

Epigenetic mechanisms play crucial roles in many processes, including neoplasia, genomic imprinting, gene silencing, differentiation, embryogenesis and X chromosome inactivation. Their relevance in human disease and therapy has grown rapidly with the recent emergence of drugs that target for example DNA methylation or histone acetylation. Epigenetic effects were also recently highlighted by the decipheri Read More

Mast cells are potent effectors playing a key role in IgE-associated hypersensitivity reactions, allergic disorders, inflammation and protective immune responses. Mast cell development in vivo occurs mainly in non-hematopoietic microenvironments and increased mast cell numbers can be seen in various inflammatory diseases and pathologic conditions. SCF (also known as kit ligand or KitL) and c-kit signaling are essential f Read More