Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 17, Issue 24, 2010

PDE5 belongs to a superfamily of enzymes that catalyzes the hydrolysis of cyclic nucleotides cAMP and cGMP to the corresponding 5-nucleoside monophosphate. PDE5 takes part in many physiological and pathological functions, therefore selective PDE5 inhibitors are potentially useful for a variety of pathologies. At the present, PDE5 inhibitors available on the market have been used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction but, at the same time, are in clinical trials investigating other pathologies such as pulmonary arterial hypertension, coronary vasospasm, benign prostatic hyperplasia etc. This review analyzes the PDE5 inhibitors currently in clinical use, the drugs in clinical trials and the most representative chemical classes published in literature in this last decade.

Together with anandamide, 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) constitutes one of the main representatives of a family of endogenous lipids known as endocannabinoids. These act by binding to CB1 and CB2 cannabinoid receptors, the molecular target of the psychoactive compound Δ9-THC, both in the periphery and in the central nervous system, where they behave as retrograde messengers to modulate synaptic transmission. These last years, evidence has accumulated to demonstrate the lead role played by the monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL) in the regulation of 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) levels. Considering the numerous physiological functions played by this endocannabinoid, MAGL is now considered a promising target for therapeutics, as inhibitors of this enzyme could reveal useful for the treatment of pain and inflammatory disorders, as well as in cancer research, among others. Here we review the milestones that punctuated MAGL history, from its discovery to recent advances in the field of inhibitors development. An emphasis is given on the recent elucidation of the tridimensional structure of the enzyme, which could offer new opportunities for rational drug design.

L-glutamate is the major excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system (CNS). Although just a few glutamate receptor ligands have turned out to be clinically useful, primarily because of unfavorable psychotropic side effects, the glutamate system remains an attractive molecular target in the treatment of epilepsy, neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's chorea), schizophrenia, ischemia, pain, alcoholism and mood disorders. Knowledge about the structure of ionotropic glutamate receptors (iGluRs) at atomic resolution is vital for the determination of their physiological and pathological importance and, thus, for drug design. Recently, tremendous progress has been made in structure elucidation and understanding of the functioning of iGluRs. The data about general topology and modular composition of iGluRs as well as numerous crystal structures of ligand binding domains of many iGluR subtypes has been supplemented with the first molecular models of the whole receptor protein, followed by the first crystal structures of N-terminal domains and finally by the first crystal structure of the whole tetrameric iGluR. This review summarizes experimental and computational efforts to determine iGluR molecular architecture and focus on the above listed achievements of the last years. In particular, the aspects of iGluR structure which are important for drug design, like the molecular characterstics of the ligand binding sites, are depicted in detail.

Progress in genomics and proteomics provides clinical oncology with new anti-cancer drugs, which target selectively aberrantly expressed membrane proteins and associated signalling pathways in malignant cells. Molecular targeting also enables specific delivery of cytotoxic substances to tumours sparing healthy tissues. Improved selectivity of the treatment reduces side effects and widens the therapeutic window. However, only a part of the patients might benefit from such treatment due to inter- and intrapatient heterogeneity of therapeutic target expression. This makes it necessary to identify patients, who may benefit from targeting therapy. Radiolabelled peptides can provide selective and sensitive detection of molecular therapeutic targets in both primary tumours and metastases in a single non-invasive procedure, making personalised treatment possible. The choice of detection method (single photon emission tomography or positron emission tomography), radionuclide for labelling and labelling chemistry can appreciably influence the imaging property of a tracer. The labelling method might affect the binding affinity, the cellular processing and retention of a radionuclide, the biodistribution of a targeting peptide, and excretion pathways of a non-bound tracer and radiocatabolites. This influences the sensitivity and specificity of the imaging. This influence is exemplified by three classes of tumour-targeting peptides: somatostatin analogues, bombesin analogues and Affibody molecules. The review suggests approaches for selection of an optimal labelling chemistry.

Receptor-binding peptides have attracted an enormous interest in targeting molecules for the development of tumour specific radiopharmaceutical compounds. The overexpression of many receptors on human tumour makes such peptide-ligands attractive agents for diagnostic imaging and therapy of cancers. The use of solid-phase peptide synthesis and the availability of a wide range of bifunctional chelating agents for the radiolabelling of bioactive peptides with radionuclides have produced a wide variety of useful radiopharmaceutical molecules. For diagnostic purposes, techenetium- 99m is the ideal radionuclide thanks to its nuclear properties and the availability of a low cost portable generator system.

To the Editor: We regret that text within our article “The Significance of Neuroglobin in the Brain”, published in the journal Current Medicinal Chemistry (vol. 17, pp. 160-172) was unintentionally adapted from other sources without the proper attributions to the authors who made identical interpretations from the available primary data. We deeply regret any inconvenience to the source authors for this significant oversight and wish to extend an unreserved apology to the authors, and the editorial and publishing staff of the journal. We should have directly cited the following articles as the original sources of some interpretations contained within the article in order to correctly attribute some of the concepts discussed: 1] Burmester T, Hankeln T. (2009) What is the function of neuroglobin? J Exp Biol. 212, 1423-1428. [2] Hankeln T, et al. (2005) Neuroglobin and cytoglobin in search of their role in the vertebrate globin family. J Inorg Biochem. 99, 110-119. [3] Brunori M, Vallone B. (2007) Neuroglobin, seven years after. Cell Mol Life Sci 64, 1259-1268. [4] Brunori M, Vallone B. (2006) A globin for the brain. FASEB J. 20, 2192-2197.