Drug Discovery For Schizophrenia

Since the pioneering pharmacotherapy for treatment of schizophrenia in the 1950s by antipsychotics, only a few major innovations have been made, pointing to a general stagnation in the field of pharmacology of schizophrenia. Drug Discovery for Schizophrenia covers new insights in the field of schizophrenia with an aim to advance the understanding of scientists and clinicians in this area and to fuel drug discovery. The book outlines a change in the way schizophrenia is treated by moving away from focusing only on treating symptoms in patients. Innovative drugs emerge from deeper comprehension of the pathological processes that emerge earlier in life, hence, providing strategies for preventative therapy to alter the course of this mental disorder. Amongst other current topics, the book covers new findings in genetics and epigenetics, progress in animal models for schizophrenia and the usage of induced pluripotent stem cells. The combination of these important areas benefit psychiatric neuroscience, filling the gaps in the knowledge of neurobiology of schizophrenia and providing novel perspectives for future drug development.

New and emerging directions in pharmaceutical research to better treat schizophrenia Although the dopamine hypothesis has been the cornerstone of schizophrenia therapeutics, it is clear that dopamine-based approaches do not treat all aspects of the disease. Moreover, many schizophrenia patients fail to respond to current antipsychotics. Integrating chemistry, biology, and pharmacology, this book explores emerging directions in pharmaceutical research for drug targeting and discovery in order to find more effective treatments for schizophrenia, one of the most serious and widespread psychiatric diseases. Targets and Emerging Therapies for Schizophrenia presents the basics of schizophrenia, drug targets for the disease, and potential new drugs and therapeutics. It begins with a discussion of prevalence and etiology. Then, it describes therapies such as dopamine agonists and phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitors as well as growing research aimed at addressing untreated symptoms. Next, the authors discuss receptor modulators, inhibitors, and targeting strategies for drug discovery. Both the neurobiological and chemical aspects of all major pharmacological targets are examined. With contributions from an international team of pioneering pharmaceutical researchers, this book compiles the current knowledge in the field, setting the stage for new breakthroughs in the treatment of schizophrenia. Targets and Emerging Therapies for Schizophrenia: Provides a comprehensive resource for neuro-drug discovery and the development of molecular targets for schizophrenia treatment Draws from chemistry, biology, and pharmacology for more effective drug targeting and discovery Explores a wide range of receptors and molecular targets, including dopamine, PDEs, and neuropeptides With Targets and Emerging Therapies for Schizophrenia as their guide, drug discovery and development scientists have the information they need to advance their own research so that new, more effective treatments for schizophrenia will soon be a reality.

This is a wide scope and in-depth coverage of the state of the art and future directions in drug discovery for major psychiatric disorders.

The topic-related series Topics in Medicinal Chemistry covers all relevant aspects of drug research, e.g. pathobiochemistry of diseases, identification and validation of (emerging) drug targets, structural biology, drug ability of targets, drug design approaches, chemogenomics, synthetic chemistry including combinatorial methods, bioorganic chemistry, natural compounds, high-throughput screening, pharmacological in vitro and in vivo investigations, drug-receptor interactions on the molecular level, structure-activity relationships, drug absorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination, toxicology and pharmacogenomics. Medicinal chemistry is both science and art. The science of medicinal chemistry offers mankind one of its best hopes for improving the quality of life. The art of medicinal chemistry continues to challenge its practitioners with the need for both intuition and experience to discover new drugs. Hence sharing the experience of drug research is uniquely beneficial to the field of medicinal chemistry. Drug research requires interdisciplinary team-work at the interface between chemistry, biology and medicine.

Provides unique insider insight into the current drug development process, and what it takes to achieve success In this fourth volume in the series, inventors and primary developers of drugs that made it to the market continue telling the story of the drugs? discovery and development, and discuss the sometimes twisted route from the first drug candidate molecule to the final marketed one. Beginning with a general section addressing overarching topics for drug discovery, the book offers seven chapters that feature selected case studies describing recently introduced drugs or drug classes. These include small molecule drugs as well as biopharmaceuticals and range across different therapeutic fields. Together, they provide a representative cross-section of the present-day drug development effort. Successful Drug Discovery: Volume 4 covers trends in peptide-based drug discovery and the physicochemical properties of recently approved oral drugs. The section on drug class studies looks at antibody-drug conjugates and the discovery, evolution, and therapeutic potential of dopamine partial agonists. Featured case studies examine the discovery of Etelcalcetide for the treatment of secondary hyper-parathyroidism in patients with chronic kidney disease; the development of Lenvatinib Mesylate; the discovery and development of Venetoclax; and more. -Focuses on recently introduced drugs that have not been featured in any textbooks or general references, including Ocrelizumab, a new generation of anti-CD-20 mAb for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, and Venetoclax, a selective antagonist of BCL-2 -Features personal experiences of successful drug developers from industry and academia -Endorsed and supported by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) Successful Drug Discovery: Volume 4 provides a fascinating and informative look into the process of drug discovery and would be a great reference for those in the pharmaceutical industry, organic and pharmaceutical chemists, and lecturers in pharmacy.

Improving and Accelerating Therapeutic Development for Nervous System Disorders is the summary of a workshop convened by the IOM Forum on Neuroscience and Nervous System Disorders to examine opportunities to accelerate early phases of drug development for nervous system drug discovery. Workshop participants discussed challenges in neuroscience research for enabling faster entry of potential treatments into first-in-human trials, explored how new and emerging tools and technologies may improve the efficiency of research, and considered mechanisms to facilitate a more effective and efficient development pipeline. There are several challenges to the current drug development pipeline for nervous system disorders. The fundamental etiology and pathophysiology of many nervous system disorders are unknown and the brain is inaccessible to study, making it difficult to develop accurate models. Patient heterogeneity is high, disease pathology can occur years to decades before becoming clinically apparent, and diagnostic and treatment biomarkers are lacking. In addition, the lack of validated targets, limitations related to the predictive validity of animal models - the extent to which the model predicts clinical efficacy - and regulatory barriers can also impede translation and drug development for nervous system disorders. Improving and Accelerating Therapeutic Development for Nervous System Disorders identifies avenues for moving directly from cellular models to human trials, minimizing the need for animal models to test efficacy, and discusses the potential benefits and risks of such an approach. This report is a timely discussion of opportunities to improve early drug development with a focus toward preclinical trials.

The new edition of this popular handbook has been thoroughly updated to include the latest data concerning treatment of first-episode patients. Drawing from their experience, the authors discuss the presentation and assessment of the first psychotic episode and review the appropriate use of antipsychotic agents and psychosocial approaches in effective management. This is an authoritative text written by a team of highly respected authors for psychiatrists, neurologists, primary care practitioners and health care professional working in psychiatry. Drawing from their experience, the presentation and assessment of the first psychotic episode are discussed, details regarding antipsychotic drugs and their appropriate use are reviewed and psychosocial approaches are examined. The resulting book offers a concise and valuable guide to those wishing to review the latest proposals for the treatment of first-episode psychosis supported by up-to-date references, in a single publication.