Development of generic drug product by pharmaceutical industry is a scientific and technical approach which is totally different from developing a reference or innovator product. Most of the developing countries focus...Development of generic drug product by pharmaceutical industry is a scientific and technical approach which is totally different from developing a reference or innovator product. Most of the developing countries focus on developing the generic drug products because huge amount of investment is required for innovation and to develop reference product. The generic medicine has to be bioequivalent to the innovator drug and ensure the same biological effect with proper safety and efficacy. Nowadays, the pharmaceutical industries focus on the development of generic product as this does not require that much time and cost compared to the innovator company. But development of generic product is also difficult as it contains the same therapeutic efficacy as innovator. The development approach is based on the target market, i.e. US market, EU market. If a manufacturer targets the US market, then all excipients should be USP grade, analysis should be conducted by USP method or in-house method and stability studies as well. Prior and during the development of generic drug product API selection, dosage form selection, reference product selection and characterization, formulation development, analytical method development, tech transfer or submission batch are prime concern. Then again, bioequivalence study, drug registration procedure and commercialization of the generic product considering regulatory guidance of respective regulatory agencies and the approaches taken by the regulatory agencies for the development of registration of generic medicines are also crucial as well for the development of generic drug product. The aim of this study was to review the entire stage of a generic drug development by a generic pharmaceutical company.展开更多
miRNAs are non-coding RNAs that play a regulatory role in expression of genes and are associated with diseases. Quantitatively measuring expression levels of miRNAs can help understanding the mechanisms of human disea...miRNAs are non-coding RNAs that play a regulatory role in expression of genes and are associated with diseases. Quantitatively measuring expression levels of miRNAs can help understanding the mechanisms of human diseases and discovering new drug targets. There are three major methods that have been used to measure the expression levels of miRNAs: real-time reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR), microarray, and the newly introduced next-generation sequencing (NGS). NGS is not only suitable for profiling of known miRNAs that qRT-PCR and microarray can do too but also able to detect unknown miRNAs that the other two methods are incapable. Profiling of miRNAs by NGS has been progressed rapidly and is a promising field for applications in drug development. This paper will review the technical advancement of NGS for profiling miRNAs, including comparative analyses between different platforms and software packages for analyzing NGS data. Examples and future perspectives of applications of NGS profiling miRNAs in drug development will be discussed.展开更多
Background: Epilepsy is a chronic brain disorder. It often leads to disabilities and handicaps. In Africa, epilepsy is almost exclusively treated by general practitioners (GPs) because of a shortage of epilepsy specia...Background: Epilepsy is a chronic brain disorder. It often leads to disabilities and handicaps. In Africa, epilepsy is almost exclusively treated by general practitioners (GPs) because of a shortage of epilepsy specialists. It is therefore important to know the level of knowledge about epilepsy among GPs in order to improve their skills. Objectives: To assess the level of knowledge about the management of anti-epileptic drug treatment among GPs in Brazzaville;to investigate the relationship between demographic factors and GPs’ knowledge. Methods: This was a cross-sectional analytical study. It was conducted from 20 July to 1 September 2021. It focused on GPs working in public hospitals and private care centers in Brazzaville. Information on treatment aspects was collected through a standardized 11-item questionnaire. Results: Among the 137 participants, there were 84 (61.3%) men and 53 (38.7%) women. Of these participants, 36 (26.3%) were trained in Congo versus 101 (73.7%) in other countries. Only 21 (15.3%) GPs had good knowledge about the management of anti-epileptic drug treatment. The overall average knowledge score among GPs was low (31.4%). No significant associations were found between low and good levels of knowledge and gender (OR = 1.03;95% CI = 0.40 - 2.68;p = 1.000), age groups (OR 0.05), training country (OR = 0.62;95% CI = 0.19 - 1.98;p = 0.591), practice hospital (OR = 0.40;95% CI = 0.05 - 3.20;p = 0.695) and duration of professional experience (OR 0.05). Conclusion: The study population has insufficient knowledge about the management of anti-epileptic drug treatment. Demographic factors have no impact on GPs’ knowledge. Epilepsy education programs are needed to improve GPs’ knowledge and skills.展开更多
It is well known that calcium channel blockers(CCBs) are the first line of therapy for vasospastic angina(VSA). Here, we report two cases of VSA with an increase in the frequency of angina attacks after switching from...It is well known that calcium channel blockers(CCBs) are the first line of therapy for vasospastic angina(VSA). Here, we report two cases of VSA with an increase in the frequency of angina attacks after switching from a brand-name to a generic CCB. In both cases, angina recurred upon switching from a brand-name CCB to a generic CCB during follow-up. The patients' condition improved upon switching back to the original CCB. Both cases involved a high severity of VSA, based on the results of spasm provocation testing. These findings suggest that, in some patients with severe VSA, the frequency of angina attacks increases when switching from a brand-name CCB to a generic CCB. Cardiologists should consider this factor when prescribing drugs for angina.展开更多
The basic unit in life is cell.?It contains many protein molecules located at its different organelles. The growth and reproduction of a cell as well as most of its other biological functions are performed via these p...The basic unit in life is cell.?It contains many protein molecules located at its different organelles. The growth and reproduction of a cell as well as most of its other biological functions are performed via these proteins. But proteins in different organelles or subcellular locations have different functions. Facing?the avalanche of protein sequences generated in the postgenomic age, we are challenged to develop high throughput tools for identifying the subcellular localization of proteins based on their sequence information alone. Although considerable efforts have been made in this regard, the problem is far apart from being solved yet. Most existing methods can be used to deal with single-location proteins only. Actually, proteins with multi-locations may have some special biological functions that are particularly important for drug targets. Using the ML-GKR (Multi-Label Gaussian Kernel Regression) method,?we developed a new predictor called “pLoc-mGpos” by in-depth extracting the key information from GO (Gene Ontology) into the Chou’s general PseAAC (Pseudo Amino Acid Composition)?for predicting the subcellular localization of Gram-positive bacterial proteins with both single and multiple location sites. Rigorous cross-validation on a same stringent benchmark dataset indicated that the proposed pLoc-mGpos predictor is remarkably superior to “iLoc-Gpos”, the state-of-the-art predictor for the same purpose.?To maximize the convenience of most experimental scientists, a user-friendly web-server for the new powerful predictor has been established at http://www.jci-bioinfo.cn/pLoc-mGpos/, by which users can easily get their desired results without the need to go through the complicated mathematics involved.展开更多
Recent publications reveal the disturbing information that a minor edit to an algorithm being used for designing legitimate drug candidates redirected the program in a way that resulted in the surprising design of nov...Recent publications reveal the disturbing information that a minor edit to an algorithm being used for designing legitimate drug candidates redirected the program in a way that resulted in the surprising design of novel chemical warfare agent candidates. Although this outcome was not the result of nefarious intent, and appropriate chemical defense authorities were notified, the potential implications of some misapplication of a drug-design algorithm for nefarious purposes are clear. This Commentary summarizes how otherwise benign Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms used for drug discovery can be easily reversed to design novel chemical warfare agents for which no effective antidote will be available, or perhaps even envisioned.展开更多
The use of ＂bath salts＂ or other new psychoactive substances,otherwise known as ＂legal highs＂,is increasing.Illicit drug use during pregnancy is not uncommon.Nevertheless,literature reporting bath salts and their ...The use of ＂bath salts＂ or other new psychoactive substances,otherwise known as ＂legal highs＂,is increasing.Illicit drug use during pregnancy is not uncommon.Nevertheless,literature reporting bath salts and their effect on pregnancy is scant.Besides,there seems to be no literature about bath salts and conduct of general anesthesia.This case report describes a general anesthetic for the surgical delivery of an infant to a woman under the acute influence of bath salts and methamphetamines.展开更多
The human serotonin transporter(SERT)terminates neurotransmission by removing serotonin from the synaptic cleft,which is an essential process that plays an important role in depression.In addition to natural substrate...The human serotonin transporter(SERT)terminates neurotransmission by removing serotonin from the synaptic cleft,which is an essential process that plays an important role in depression.In addition to natural substrate serotonin,SERT is also the target of the abused drug cocaine and,clinically used antidepressants,escitalopram,and paroxetine.To date,few studies have attempted to investigate the unbinding mechanism underlying the orthosteric and allosteric modulation of SERT.In this article,the conserved property of the orthosteric and allosteric sites(S1 and S2)of SERT was revealed by combining the high resolutions of x-ray crystal structures and molecular dynamics(MD)simulations.The residues Tyr95 and Ser438 located within the S1 site,and Arg104 located within the S2 site in SERT illustrate conserved interactions(hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions),as responses to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.Van der Waals interactions were keys to designing effective drugs inhibiting SERT and further,electrostatic interactions highlighted escitalopram as a potent antidepressant.We found that cocaine,escitalopram,and paroxetine,whether the S1 site or the S2 site,were more competitive.According to this potential of mean force(PMF)simulations,the new insights reveal the principles of competitive inhibitors that lengths of trails from central SERT to an opening were~18A for serotonin and~22 A for the above-mentioned three drugs.Furthermore,the distance between the natural substrate serotonin and cocaine(or escitalopram)at the allosteric site was~3A.Thus,it can be inferred that the potent antidepressants tended to bind at deeper positions of the S1 or the S2 site of SERT in comparison to the substrate.Continuing exploring the processes of unbinding four ligands against the two target pockets of SERT,this study observed a broad pathway in which serotonin,cocaine,escitalopram(at the S1 site),and paroxetine all were pulled out to an opening between MT1b and MT6a,which may be helpful to understand the dissociation mechanism of antidepressants.展开更多
General anesthetics constitute some of the most important and widely-used therapeutic drugs in the pharmacotherapeutic armamentarium. They are routinely used effectively and with adequate precaution-safety throughout ...General anesthetics constitute some of the most important and widely-used therapeutic drugs in the pharmacotherapeutic armamentarium. They are routinely used effectively and with adequate precaution-safety throughout the world for a multitude of clinical applications, predominantly as adjunctive agents for surgical procedures. Nevertheless, they have potential adverse effects (such as a drop in blood pressure and the inhibition of steroid production), particularly in vulnerable populations such as the very young and the frail elderly. It would be desirable therefore to have alternative agents that are just as efficacious, but have a better safety profile in a broader spectrum of patients. Toward this end, an anesthetic based on a unique chemical core (viz., an N-arylpyrrole derivative) has been reported in preclinical models to produce anesthetic effects without hemodynamic suppression. This lead could pave the way for new general anesthetics that are safer and easier to use.展开更多
Background: Antiparkinsonian pharmacotherapy represents one of the most important expenses related to Parkinson’s disease. The application of generic drugs may help to reduce the economic burden of the disease;howeve...Background: Antiparkinsonian pharmacotherapy represents one of the most important expenses related to Parkinson’s disease. The application of generic drugs may help to reduce the economic burden of the disease;however, efficacy and safety of these products have been less studied. Objective: To investigate the efficacy and safety of generic rasagiline (Ralago?) from a clinical perspective. Methods: The Clinical Global Impression of Severity scale was used to rate the most important motor and non-motor symptoms at baseline and 12 weeks after the initiation of Ralago?. Patients also identified symptoms which were the main sources of their disability and distress in everyday life. Results: A total of 499 patients were enrolled (231 females, mean age: 73.2 ± 9.1 years, mean duration of disease: 3.6 ± 3.7 years). Of them, 486 patients completed the study protocol. Both motor and non-motor symptoms showed improvement during 12-week Ralago? treatment. Adverse events were rare, and the majority of them were not considered as serious. Conclusions: The generic rasagiline (Ralago?) is an effective and safe generic product.展开更多
文摘Development of generic drug product by pharmaceutical industry is a scientific and technical approach which is totally different from developing a reference or innovator product. Most of the developing countries focus on developing the generic drug products because huge amount of investment is required for innovation and to develop reference product. The generic medicine has to be bioequivalent to the innovator drug and ensure the same biological effect with proper safety and efficacy. Nowadays, the pharmaceutical industries focus on the development of generic product as this does not require that much time and cost compared to the innovator company. But development of generic product is also difficult as it contains the same therapeutic efficacy as innovator. The development approach is based on the target market, i.e. US market, EU market. If a manufacturer targets the US market, then all excipients should be USP grade, analysis should be conducted by USP method or in-house method and stability studies as well. Prior and during the development of generic drug product API selection, dosage form selection, reference product selection and characterization, formulation development, analytical method development, tech transfer or submission batch are prime concern. Then again, bioequivalence study, drug registration procedure and commercialization of the generic product considering regulatory guidance of respective regulatory agencies and the approaches taken by the regulatory agencies for the development of registration of generic medicines are also crucial as well for the development of generic drug product. The aim of this study was to review the entire stage of a generic drug development by a generic pharmaceutical company.
文摘miRNAs are non-coding RNAs that play a regulatory role in expression of genes and are associated with diseases. Quantitatively measuring expression levels of miRNAs can help understanding the mechanisms of human diseases and discovering new drug targets. There are three major methods that have been used to measure the expression levels of miRNAs: real-time reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR), microarray, and the newly introduced next-generation sequencing (NGS). NGS is not only suitable for profiling of known miRNAs that qRT-PCR and microarray can do too but also able to detect unknown miRNAs that the other two methods are incapable. Profiling of miRNAs by NGS has been progressed rapidly and is a promising field for applications in drug development. This paper will review the technical advancement of NGS for profiling miRNAs, including comparative analyses between different platforms and software packages for analyzing NGS data. Examples and future perspectives of applications of NGS profiling miRNAs in drug development will be discussed.
文摘Background: Epilepsy is a chronic brain disorder. It often leads to disabilities and handicaps. In Africa, epilepsy is almost exclusively treated by general practitioners (GPs) because of a shortage of epilepsy specialists. It is therefore important to know the level of knowledge about epilepsy among GPs in order to improve their skills. Objectives: To assess the level of knowledge about the management of anti-epileptic drug treatment among GPs in Brazzaville;to investigate the relationship between demographic factors and GPs’ knowledge. Methods: This was a cross-sectional analytical study. It was conducted from 20 July to 1 September 2021. It focused on GPs working in public hospitals and private care centers in Brazzaville. Information on treatment aspects was collected through a standardized 11-item questionnaire. Results: Among the 137 participants, there were 84 (61.3%) men and 53 (38.7%) women. Of these participants, 36 (26.3%) were trained in Congo versus 101 (73.7%) in other countries. Only 21 (15.3%) GPs had good knowledge about the management of anti-epileptic drug treatment. The overall average knowledge score among GPs was low (31.4%). No significant associations were found between low and good levels of knowledge and gender (OR = 1.03;95% CI = 0.40 - 2.68;p = 1.000), age groups (OR 0.05), training country (OR = 0.62;95% CI = 0.19 - 1.98;p = 0.591), practice hospital (OR = 0.40;95% CI = 0.05 - 3.20;p = 0.695) and duration of professional experience (OR 0.05). Conclusion: The study population has insufficient knowledge about the management of anti-epileptic drug treatment. Demographic factors have no impact on GPs’ knowledge. Epilepsy education programs are needed to improve GPs’ knowledge and skills.
文摘It is well known that calcium channel blockers(CCBs) are the first line of therapy for vasospastic angina(VSA). Here, we report two cases of VSA with an increase in the frequency of angina attacks after switching from a brand-name to a generic CCB. In both cases, angina recurred upon switching from a brand-name CCB to a generic CCB during follow-up. The patients' condition improved upon switching back to the original CCB. Both cases involved a high severity of VSA, based on the results of spasm provocation testing. These findings suggest that, in some patients with severe VSA, the frequency of angina attacks increases when switching from a brand-name CCB to a generic CCB. Cardiologists should consider this factor when prescribing drugs for angina.
文摘The basic unit in life is cell.?It contains many protein molecules located at its different organelles. The growth and reproduction of a cell as well as most of its other biological functions are performed via these proteins. But proteins in different organelles or subcellular locations have different functions. Facing?the avalanche of protein sequences generated in the postgenomic age, we are challenged to develop high throughput tools for identifying the subcellular localization of proteins based on their sequence information alone. Although considerable efforts have been made in this regard, the problem is far apart from being solved yet. Most existing methods can be used to deal with single-location proteins only. Actually, proteins with multi-locations may have some special biological functions that are particularly important for drug targets. Using the ML-GKR (Multi-Label Gaussian Kernel Regression) method,?we developed a new predictor called “pLoc-mGpos” by in-depth extracting the key information from GO (Gene Ontology) into the Chou’s general PseAAC (Pseudo Amino Acid Composition)?for predicting the subcellular localization of Gram-positive bacterial proteins with both single and multiple location sites. Rigorous cross-validation on a same stringent benchmark dataset indicated that the proposed pLoc-mGpos predictor is remarkably superior to “iLoc-Gpos”, the state-of-the-art predictor for the same purpose.?To maximize the convenience of most experimental scientists, a user-friendly web-server for the new powerful predictor has been established at http://www.jci-bioinfo.cn/pLoc-mGpos/, by which users can easily get their desired results without the need to go through the complicated mathematics involved.
文摘Recent publications reveal the disturbing information that a minor edit to an algorithm being used for designing legitimate drug candidates redirected the program in a way that resulted in the surprising design of novel chemical warfare agent candidates. Although this outcome was not the result of nefarious intent, and appropriate chemical defense authorities were notified, the potential implications of some misapplication of a drug-design algorithm for nefarious purposes are clear. This Commentary summarizes how otherwise benign Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms used for drug discovery can be easily reversed to design novel chemical warfare agents for which no effective antidote will be available, or perhaps even envisioned.
文摘The use of ＂bath salts＂ or other new psychoactive substances,otherwise known as ＂legal highs＂,is increasing.Illicit drug use during pregnancy is not uncommon.Nevertheless,literature reporting bath salts and their effect on pregnancy is scant.Besides,there seems to be no literature about bath salts and conduct of general anesthesia.This case report describes a general anesthetic for the surgical delivery of an infant to a woman under the acute influence of bath salts and methamphetamines.
基金Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.11904036 and 12175081)Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(Grant No.CCNU22QNOO4)。
文摘The human serotonin transporter(SERT)terminates neurotransmission by removing serotonin from the synaptic cleft,which is an essential process that plays an important role in depression.In addition to natural substrate serotonin,SERT is also the target of the abused drug cocaine and,clinically used antidepressants,escitalopram,and paroxetine.To date,few studies have attempted to investigate the unbinding mechanism underlying the orthosteric and allosteric modulation of SERT.In this article,the conserved property of the orthosteric and allosteric sites(S1 and S2)of SERT was revealed by combining the high resolutions of x-ray crystal structures and molecular dynamics(MD)simulations.The residues Tyr95 and Ser438 located within the S1 site,and Arg104 located within the S2 site in SERT illustrate conserved interactions(hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions),as responses to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors.Van der Waals interactions were keys to designing effective drugs inhibiting SERT and further,electrostatic interactions highlighted escitalopram as a potent antidepressant.We found that cocaine,escitalopram,and paroxetine,whether the S1 site or the S2 site,were more competitive.According to this potential of mean force(PMF)simulations,the new insights reveal the principles of competitive inhibitors that lengths of trails from central SERT to an opening were~18A for serotonin and~22 A for the above-mentioned three drugs.Furthermore,the distance between the natural substrate serotonin and cocaine(or escitalopram)at the allosteric site was~3A.Thus,it can be inferred that the potent antidepressants tended to bind at deeper positions of the S1 or the S2 site of SERT in comparison to the substrate.Continuing exploring the processes of unbinding four ligands against the two target pockets of SERT,this study observed a broad pathway in which serotonin,cocaine,escitalopram(at the S1 site),and paroxetine all were pulled out to an opening between MT1b and MT6a,which may be helpful to understand the dissociation mechanism of antidepressants.
文摘General anesthetics constitute some of the most important and widely-used therapeutic drugs in the pharmacotherapeutic armamentarium. They are routinely used effectively and with adequate precaution-safety throughout the world for a multitude of clinical applications, predominantly as adjunctive agents for surgical procedures. Nevertheless, they have potential adverse effects (such as a drop in blood pressure and the inhibition of steroid production), particularly in vulnerable populations such as the very young and the frail elderly. It would be desirable therefore to have alternative agents that are just as efficacious, but have a better safety profile in a broader spectrum of patients. Toward this end, an anesthetic based on a unique chemical core (viz., an N-arylpyrrole derivative) has been reported in preclinical models to produce anesthetic effects without hemodynamic suppression. This lead could pave the way for new general anesthetics that are safer and easier to use.
文摘Background: Antiparkinsonian pharmacotherapy represents one of the most important expenses related to Parkinson’s disease. The application of generic drugs may help to reduce the economic burden of the disease;however, efficacy and safety of these products have been less studied. Objective: To investigate the efficacy and safety of generic rasagiline (Ralago?) from a clinical perspective. Methods: The Clinical Global Impression of Severity scale was used to rate the most important motor and non-motor symptoms at baseline and 12 weeks after the initiation of Ralago?. Patients also identified symptoms which were the main sources of their disability and distress in everyday life. Results: A total of 499 patients were enrolled (231 females, mean age: 73.2 ± 9.1 years, mean duration of disease: 3.6 ± 3.7 years). Of them, 486 patients completed the study protocol. Both motor and non-motor symptoms showed improvement during 12-week Ralago? treatment. Adverse events were rare, and the majority of them were not considered as serious. Conclusions: The generic rasagiline (Ralago?) is an effective and safe generic product.
