Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 16, Issue 12, 2009

The economic burden of end stage liver disease is set to increase due to the rising prevalence of cirrhosis secondary to alcohol, viral hepatitis and fatty liver disease. Screening for liver disease has been advocated, as most cases of cirrhosis are preventable with early interventions. Liver function tests (LFTs) are routinely used as a first line investigation to screen for liver diseases but can be normal despite significant unde Read More

Cancer and cardiovascular disease (CVD) chemoprevention can be achieved by the use of natural, synthetic, or biologic compounds to reverse, suppress, or prevent the development of diseases. Chemoprevention is a potential anticancer approach, which has reduced secondary effects in comparison to classical prophylaxis. Natural compounds such as flavonoids reduce oxidative stress, which is the most likely mechanism i Read More

Bipolar disorder (BD) is a long-term illness with mood swings which are characterized by recurrent episodes of mania/hypomania and depression, with variable interpolations of relatively asymptomatic periods, called euthymic, in which, however, some psychopathological symptoms may persist. Although mood stabilizers, such as lithium, are the first-line treatment for the prevention of new BD episodes, combination thera Read More

In systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), the interaction between hyperactive T cells and B cells causes a dysregulated production of autoantibodies that can lead to tissue damage and impaired organ function. Studies on the modalities of communication between T and B cells have led to the design of new therapeutics for SLE, including autoantibodyderived peptide immunotherapies. Since many autoantibodies in SLE patients Read More

Celiac disease (CD) is an increasingly diagnosed, permanent autoimmune enteropathy, triggered, in susceptible individuals, by the ingestion of gluten, the alcohol - soluble protein fraction of some cereals, such as wheat, rye and barley. The main protein of wheat gluten is called gliadin, the similar proteins of rye and barley are secalin and hordein, respectively. Approximately 96% of CD patients express the HLA molecule DQ Read More

Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of mortality worldwide. Despite major advances in the treatment of CVD, a high proportion of CVD victims die suddenly while being apparently healthy, the great majority of these accidents being due to the rupture or erosion of a vulnerable coronary atherosclerotic plaque. A non-invasive imaging methodology allowing the early detection of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques Read More

Biofilms are matrix-enclosed microbial aggregations that adhere to biological or non-biological surfaces. They represent a significant and incompletely understood mode of growth for bacteria and fungi. Biofilm infections cause many deaths and high health costs worldwide. Biofilm infections on indwelling devices or implants are difficult to eradicate because of their much better protection against macrophages and Read More

Cholesterol cholelithiasis is one of the most common and costly digestive diseases. Although gallstones are usually asymptomatic and no treatment is generally required, it is imperative to treat symptomatic gallstones with or without complicated conditions. Laparoscopic cholecystectomy is first-line therapy for symptomatic gallstones. By contrast, a cautious study on the natural history of the disease and costs of therapy, indicat Read More

Maintenance of equilibrium between free radical production and antioxidant defences (enzymatic and non enzymatic) is an essential condition for normal organism functioning. When this equilibrium has a tendency for the production of free radicals we say that the organism is in oxidative stress. In this situation, excess free radicals may damage cellular lipids, proteins and DNA, affecting normal function and leading to vario Read More