Current Medicinal Chemistry - Volume 25, Issue 7, 2018

Background: New-generation antidepressants (NGAs) are the latest additions to the clinician's arsenal in the fight against depression. After the introduction of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), a plethora of other groups followed, identified by their main mechanisms of activity: serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI); serotonin modulators and stimulators (SMS); serotonin antagonists and reuptake inhibitors (SARI); noradrenergic and selective serotonergic antidepressants (NaSSA); norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (NeRI); serotonin, norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitors (SNDRI) or triple reuptake inhibitors (TRI); and melatonin and serotonin agonists (MaSA). Although SSRIs are still the most widely used and well known NGAs, the other groups are increasingly being used in the current therapeutic settings obtaining comparable clinical results, and with tolerability and safety profiles that can often provide significant advantages over those of SSRIs. Methods: Scopus and PubMed databases were searched for the most significant papers centered on the medicinal chemistry, pharmacodynamics, pharmacokinetics and analysis in human biological fluids of the following antidepressants: venlafaxine, duloxetine, milnacipran, trazodone, vortioxetine, vilazodone. Results: The main characteristics of commercially available non-SSRI NGAs (belonging to the SNRI, SARI and SMS classes) are described, focusing on the role of analytical methods that can be applied to perform therapeutic drug monitoring (TDM), but also including drug pharmacokinetics, metabolism and interactions.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) remains a major challenge for Public Health systems and corresponds to the replacement of renal functional tissue by extra-cellular matrix proteins such as collagens and fibronectin. There is no efficient treatment to date for CKD except nephroprotective strategies. The cannabinoid system and more specifically the cannabinoid receptors 1 (CB1) and 2 (CB2) may represent a new therapeutic target in CKD. Methods: We performed PubMed searches using the terms “cannabinoid receptors” in combination with “kidney” or “renal disease” or “nephropathy” or “diabetes” or “renal fibrosis” or “cellular pathways” in various combinations. We analyzed full-text English-language papers. We also searched the reference lists of identified articles for further relevant papers. Results: We gathered data regarding the current state of knowledge on the cannabinoid system in normal renal physiology and in various experimental nephropathies, especially diabetes. We also reviewed data obtained in models of diabetes and obesity as well as in non metabolic models of renal fibrosis when CB1 blockers and/or CB2 agonists were used. We also found that very few data are available so far regarding the cellular pathways involved downstream of the cannabinoid receptors in the development of renal fibrosis. Conclusion: Overall, we found that the cannabinoid receptors are a promising target in the development of renal disease and fibrosis, particularly in CKD and diabetes.

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is still a major health problem worldwide. The current available antiviral drugs for the treatment of chronic HBV infection do not achieve satisfactory results. Thus, it is desirable to develop novel anti-HBV drugs based on the recent advances of basic research on molecular biology of HBV. HBV nucleocapsid assembly is now considered as a potential target of anti-HBV therapy. Structural and functional analysis provided essential insight of molecular interaction of the components of HBV nucleocapsid. Prototypes of small molecule modulators of HBV nucleocapsid assembly were developed and partly tested in clinical phase I. In the present review, the recent advances in HBV molecular biology and approach to develop inhibitors for anti-HBV treatment based on the disruption of viral nucleocapsids by either prevention of assembly or induction of misassembly will be summarized. We will discuss the future concepts of anti-HBV treatment based on such new approaches.

Background: Autophagy is a cellular pathway with the ability to maintain cell homeostasis through the elimination of damaged or useless cellular components, and its deregulation may initiate or aggravate different human diseases. Flavonoids, a group of plant metabolites, are able to modulate different molecular and cellular processes including autophagy. Objective: To review the effects of flavonoids on autophagy pathway in both invasive and noninvasive human diseases, focusing on the global outcomes in their progression. Moreover, the efficacy of the combination of flavonoids with drugs or other natural nontoxic compounds was also reviewed. Methods: A literature search was performed to identify and analyze peer-reviewed publications containing in vitro and in vivo studies focused on autophagy deregulation in different proliferative and non-proliferative pathologies and the potential protective effects of flavonoids. Results: Analyzed publications indicated that imbalance between cell death and survival induced by changes in autophagy play an important role in the pathophysiology of a number of human diseases. The use of different flavonoids as autophagy modulators, alone or in combination with other molecules, might be a worthy strategy in the treatment of cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, cardiovascular diseases, hepatic diseases, leishmaniasis, influenza, gastric ulcers produced by Helicobacter pylori infection, diabetes, asthma, age-related macular degeneration or osteoporosis. Conclusion: Flavonoids could potentially constitute important adjuvant agents of conventional therapies in the treatment of autophagy deregulation-related diseases. Moreover, combined therapy may help to diminish the doses of those conventional treatments, leading to reduced drug-derivative side effects and to improved patients' survival.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) has been developed as an alternative modality for the management of neoplastic and nonneoplastic diseases. It is a minimally invasive treatment that involves the interaction of a non-toxic photosensitizer (PS), light and molecular oxygen to generate reactive oxygen species (ROS), resulting in the destruction of unwanted cells and tissues. Discovery and development of new PSs with optimized properties are much crucial for achieving a desirable therapeutic efficacy. This review describes the photochemical and photobiological mechanisms of PDT, and outlines the recent progress in discovery and development of natural products and their derivatives as phototherapeutic drugs. The potential limitations and future perspectives of PDT in clinical application are also presented and discussed.

Background: Obesity is a global epidemic throughout the world. There is thus increasing interest in searching for natural bioactive compounds with anti-obesity effect. A number of marine compounds have been regarded as potential sources of bioactive compounds and are associated with an anti-obesity effect. Objective: Marine-derived compounds with anti-obesity effect and their current applications, methods and indicators for the evaluation of anti-obesity activity are summarized in this review. in order to make contributions to the development of marine-derived functional food against obesity. Results: In this review, an overview of marine-derived compounds with anti-obesity effect, including marine polysaccharides, marine lipid, marine peptides, marine carotenoids is intensively made with an emphasis on their efficacy and mechanism of action. Meanwhile, methods and indicators for the evaluation of anti-obesity activity are discussed. We summarize these methods into three categories: in vitro assay (including adsorption experiments and enzyme inhibitory assay), cell line study, animal experiments and clinical experiments. In addition, a brief introduction of the current applications of marine bioactive compounds with anti-obesity activity is discussed. Conclusion: Marine environment is a rich source of both biological and chemical diversity. In the past decades, numerous novel compounds with anti-obesity activity have been obtained from marine organisms, and many of them have been applied to industrial production such as functional foods and pharmaceuticals. Further studies are needed to explore the above-mentioned facts.