Current Pharmaceutical Design - Volume 22, Issue 34, 2016

The search for new drug candidates in databases is of paramount importance in pharmaceutical chemistry. The selection of molecular subsets is greatly optimized and much more promising when potential drug-like molecules are detected a priori. In this work, about one hundred thousand molecules are ranked following a new methodology: a drug/non-drug classifier constructed by a consensual set of classification trees. Th Read More

Background: Leishmaniasis is a neglected disease that affects 15 million people around the world. Many limitations are associated to the treatment as high cost and toxicity. Several classes of natural substances with proven leishmanicidal activity were reported in the literature. Phytochemsitry study of Anaxagorea dolichocarpa (Annonacea) reported the isolation of aporphine alkaloids. Methods: In this study, we evaluate the pot Read More

Background: Plants became the basis of traditional medicine system throughout the world for thousands of years and continue to provide mankind with new remedies. Annona muricata, the plant of Annonaceae family, is also known as sour sop or Graviola. In recent years, many compounds have been reported and have gained organic chemist’s and biochemist’s attention because of their novel structure and wide range of bi Read More

Background: Understanding the physicochemical basis and the different models of nanosystems is nowadays fundamental in a great number of scientific areas and industrial processes. Results: Here, we focus on nanosystems created by self-assembly, molecular or inorganic. The organization of single units at these scales is a challenging matter in light of the inherently small dimensions involved, the sensitivity of t Read More

Background: A subset of asthmatics shows refractoriness to Salbutamol owing to ADRB2 gene C→T polymorphism (rs 1800888) that substitutes Thr to Ile at the position 164 in the β2 adrenergic receptor leading to sub-optimal binding of Salbutamol. The present study aims to associate the Salbutamol (200 mcg) refractoriness with the polymorphism and select the best existing agonist with optimal binding affinity against wild Read More

Background: Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men. More than 200,000 new cases are added each year in the US, translating to a lifetime risk of 1 in 7 men. Neuroendocrine prostate cancer (NEPC) is an aggressive and treatmentresistant form of prostate cancer. A subset of patients treated with aggressive androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) present with NEPC. Patients with NEPC have a r Read More

The formation of liposomes, nanoparticle micelles, and related systems by mixtures of drugs and/or surfactants is of major relevance for the design of drug delivery systems. We can design new systems using different compounds. Traditionally these systems are created by trial and error using experimental data. However, in most cases measuring all the possible combinations represents a extensive work and almost always una Read More

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most common types of malignancies worldwide. There is little information on the mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of this disease. Diagnosis of HCC at early stages would be crucial for increasing the survival of patients. Circulating miRNAs have emerged as one of the most attractive tools for an early diagnosis of cancers. Various studies have shown that there is an Read More

The snake is the symbol of medicine due to its association with Asclepius, the Greek God of medicine, and so with good reasons. More than 725 species of venomous snakes have toxins specifically evolved to exert potent bioactivity in prey or victims, and snakebites constitute a public health hazard of high impact in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and parts of Oceania. Parenteral administration of antivenoms is the mainstay in sn Read More

Background: Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS) caused by infections with Shiga toxin (Stx)-producing E. coli is a life-threatening complication characterized by acute renal failure, thrombocytopenia and hemolytic anemia. Stx is the main pathogenic factor. Therefore, the mouse model by intravenous administration of a single lethal dose of Stx is often used to explore its pathogenic mechanisms. Objective: The aim of this w Read More

Lung cancer (LC) remains the leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide, and non-small cell LC (NSCLC) represents 80% of all LC. Oxidative stress and inflammation, autophagy, ubiquitin-proteasome system, nuclear factor (NF)-ΚB, and mitogen activated protein kinases (MAPK) participate in LC pathophysiology. Currently available treatment for LC is limited and in vivo models are lacking. We hypothesized that antioxidants and N Read More