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Cancer Therapeutic Targets and Drug Design

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Pharmacology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 October 2023) | Viewed by 2505

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Radiation Oncology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA
Interests: molecular biology; cancer biology; protein and peptide chemistry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Targeted therapy has dramatically improved the survival outcomes of many cancers. However, most cancer types currently lack effective targeted therapeutic options, and even the cancers where first-line targeted therapies are available, the prevalence of treatment resistance and disease progression is a continuous challenge. Therefore, the discovery of novel cancer targets and targeting agents, particularly in aggressive and untreatable cancers, is a high priority.

This Special Issue explores the recent advances in new cancer therapeutic targets and drug design against those targets. This Special Issue welcomes original research or review papers demonstrating the discovery and validation of cancer therapeutic targets in vitro and in vivo and novel design strategies for small molecules, biologics, biosimilars, and other targeting agents. Original research articles should be supported by sufficient data or evidence.

Dr. Abhay K. Singh
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • target discovery/identification
  • target validation
  • structure-based drug design
  • high-throughput screening
  • computer-aided drug design
  • biologics
  • monoclonal antibodies
  • small molecules
  • animal models
  • immunotherapy

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Review

22 pages, 1425 KiB  
Review
NANOBODY® Molecule, a Giga Medical Tool in Nanodimensions
by Sarah Kunz, Manon Durandy, Laetitia Seguin and Chloe C. Feral
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(17), 13229; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241713229 - 25 Aug 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1986
Abstract
Although antibodies remain the most widely used tool for biomedical research, antibody technology is not flawless. Innovative alternatives, such as Nanobody® molecules, were developed to address the shortcomings of conventional antibodies. Nanobody® molecules are antigen-binding variable-domain fragments derived from the heavy-chain-only [...] Read more.
Although antibodies remain the most widely used tool for biomedical research, antibody technology is not flawless. Innovative alternatives, such as Nanobody® molecules, were developed to address the shortcomings of conventional antibodies. Nanobody® molecules are antigen-binding variable-domain fragments derived from the heavy-chain-only antibodies of camelids (VHH) and combine the advantageous properties of small molecules and monoclonal antibodies. Nanobody® molecules present a small size (~15 kDa, 4 nm long and 2.5 nm wide), high solubility, stability, specificity, and affinity, ease of cloning, and thermal and chemical resistance. Recombinant production in microorganisms is cost-effective, and VHH are also building blocks for multidomain constructs. These unique features led to numerous applications in fundamental research, diagnostics, and therapy. Nanobody® molecules are employed as biomarker probes and, when fused to radioisotopes or fluorophores, represent ideal non-invasive in vivo imaging agents. They can be used as neutralizing agents, receptor-ligand antagonists, or in targeted vehicle-based drug therapy. As early as 2018, the first Nanobody®, Cablivi (caplacizumab), a single-domain antibody (sdAb) drug developed by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi for the treatment of adult patients with acquired thrombocytopenic purpura (aTTP), was launched. Nanobody® compounds are ideal tools for further development in clinics for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cancer Therapeutic Targets and Drug Design)
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