About this Research Topic
Translational research involves scientific (and collaborative) explorations aimed at putting investigative findings in the basic medical sciences into useful applications in clinical practice for the purpose of prevention, diagnosis, and therapeutic management of disease conditions. This “bench to bedside” approach with basic research downstream facilitates the emergence of new medications.
Drug repurposing (repositioning) refers to investigational initiatives to put currently approved drugs; agents previously withdrawn; and relatively out-dated drugs to new therapeutic uses in the clinics. Reported examples of successes in drug repurposing include sildenafil (original indication (OI) - angina; new indication (NI) - erectile dysfunction), thalidomide (OI - morning sickness; NI - erythema nodosum leprosum and multiple myeloma), aspirin (OI - analgesia; NI - colorectal cancer), ketoconazole (OI - fungal infections; NI - Cushing syndrome), topiramate (OI - epilepsy; NI - obesity) etc. In respect of the ongoing Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there have been scientific claims supporting the therapeutic deployment of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine (OI - malaria, systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis) for treating mild to moderate infections caused by the virus SARS-CoV-2.
The incidence, morbidity, and mortality associated with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have been on the increase worldwide over the years. Cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, diabetes and mental illnesses have been reported to be major contributors to the NCDs burden in developing and developed countries. In most cases, cures are unavailable and current palliative therapeutic interventions are associated with worrisome untoward effects. Pre-existing conditions, including NCDs, are major contributors to the severity and fatality associated with COVID-19 worldwide. Translational research and drug repurposing offer great opportunity for widening the therapeutic options for the treatment of NCDs. The advantages over the usual drug discovery and development pipeline include lower associated risks and conservation of time and cost.
The aims of this Research Topic are to provide the platform for researchers and collaborative research teams to share their findings from translational and drug repurposing research probes as regards NCDs and to showcase potential leads and alternate therapeutic options towards reducing the burden of NCDs worldwide. The scope of this research topic on “Translational Research and Drug Repurposing for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)” includes Reviews and Original Research articles on in silico, in-vitro and in-vivo experimentations, or combinations thereof, with potential impact on the prospect of finding novel treatments for NCDs, including cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, diabetes, mental illnesses.
Drug repurposing (repositioning) refers to investigational initiatives to put currently approved drugs; agents previously withdrawn; and relatively out-dated drugs to new therapeutic uses in the clinics. Reported examples of successes in drug repurposing include sildenafil (original indication (OI) - angina; new indication (NI) - erectile dysfunction), thalidomide (OI - morning sickness; NI - erythema nodosum leprosum and multiple myeloma), aspirin (OI - analgesia; NI - colorectal cancer), ketoconazole (OI - fungal infections; NI - Cushing syndrome), topiramate (OI - epilepsy; NI - obesity) etc. In respect of the ongoing Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, there have been scientific claims supporting the therapeutic deployment of chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine (OI - malaria, systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis) for treating mild to moderate infections caused by the virus SARS-CoV-2.
The incidence, morbidity, and mortality associated with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have been on the increase worldwide over the years. Cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, diabetes and mental illnesses have been reported to be major contributors to the NCDs burden in developing and developed countries. In most cases, cures are unavailable and current palliative therapeutic interventions are associated with worrisome untoward effects. Pre-existing conditions, including NCDs, are major contributors to the severity and fatality associated with COVID-19 worldwide. Translational research and drug repurposing offer great opportunity for widening the therapeutic options for the treatment of NCDs. The advantages over the usual drug discovery and development pipeline include lower associated risks and conservation of time and cost.
The aims of this Research Topic are to provide the platform for researchers and collaborative research teams to share their findings from translational and drug repurposing research probes as regards NCDs and to showcase potential leads and alternate therapeutic options towards reducing the burden of NCDs worldwide. The scope of this research topic on “Translational Research and Drug Repurposing for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs)” includes Reviews and Original Research articles on in silico, in-vitro and in-vivo experimentations, or combinations thereof, with potential impact on the prospect of finding novel treatments for NCDs, including cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, diabetes, mental illnesses.
Keywords: Drug repositioning, cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases
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