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Molecules
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Novel Insights toward the Development of New Drugs
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Novel Insights toward the Development of New Drugs

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Medicinal Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2024 | Viewed by 2329

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Fedora Grande

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy, Health and Nutritional Sciences, University of Calabria, Ampl. Polifunzionale, Via P. Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende, Italy
Interests: drug design; small molecules; natural compounds; protein targeting; anticancer; antiviral; metabolic disorders
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Giuseppina Ioele

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy, Health and Nutritional Science, University of Calabria, 87036 Rende, CS, Italy
Interests: drug stability; photodegradation; light-stable formulations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The drug development process is notoriously long and intricate, as several aspects need to be considered to ensure the chemical and pharmaceutical quality, safety profile, and efficacy of therapeutic candidates. However, computer-aided drug design has advanced tremendously, providing numerous advantages in terms of cost and time. In addition, several relatively low-risk strategies for the repositioning of existing drugs for new therapeutic indications are under investigation.

In the advanced stages of drug development, stability studies represent a key step for the approval of new active ingredients or pharmaceutical formulations. These studies ensure that the product or active substance satisfies the specified storage conditions for the entire shelf life. In this context, the ICH Q1A-Q1F guidelines serve as a reference. The selection of the appropriate parameters, as well as a precise and correct project strategy, are required for relevant and reliable data.

This Special Issue aims to highlight the current efforts in medicinal chemistry and pharmacology towards the development of novel drugs or pharmaceutical formulations. Its content will focus on advanced drug discovery approaches by in silico identification of alternative natural and synthetic therapeutic agents, structure-activity relationships definition and the design of convenient pathways for the preparation and the stability evaluation of novel or reproposed effective agents. Nanotechnologies application and biological evaluation of newly synthesized or known drugs will also be considered.

Dr. Fedora Grande
Dr. Giuseppina Ioele
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • natural and synthetic compounds
  • drug design and synthesis
  • molecular docking and dynamic simulations
  • structure-activity relationships
  • target validation
  • biological evaluation
  • drug stability
  • protective systems

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 1786 KiB  
Article
Formulation of Polymeric Micelles to Increase the Solubility and Photostability of Caffeic Acid
by Elisabetta Mazzotta, Martina Chieffallo, Rita Muzzalupo, Miriana Spingola, Paolino Caputo, Martina Romeo and Giuseppina Ioele
Molecules 2024, 29(14), 3329; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29143329 - 15 Jul 2024
Viewed by 247
Abstract
Caffeic acid (CA), a hydrophobic polyphenol with various pharmacological activities, exhibits a low aqueous solubility and sensitivity to light. In order to improve its chemical properties and overcome the limits in its application, the compound was loaded in P123 micelles (MCs) prepared using [...] Read more.
Caffeic acid (CA), a hydrophobic polyphenol with various pharmacological activities, exhibits a low aqueous solubility and sensitivity to light. In order to improve its chemical properties and overcome the limits in its application, the compound was loaded in P123 micelles (MCs) prepared using two polymer concentrations (10 and 20% w/w, MC10 and MC20). The micelles were characterised in terms of the size distribution, zeta potential, drug encapsulation efficiency, rheology, and cumulative drug release. Micellar formulations exhibited sizes in the range of 11.70 and 17.70 nm and a good polydispersion, indicating the formation of relatively small-sized micelles, which is favourable for drug delivery applications. Additionally, the stability and antioxidant profiles of the free CA and the CA loaded in micelles were studied. The results obtained on the free CA showed the formation of photodegradation products endowed with higher DPPH scavenging activity with respect to the pure compound. Instead, it was found that the incorporation of CA into the micelles significantly increased its solubility and decreased the photodegradation rate. Overall, the results indicate the successful formation of P123 micelles loaded with CA, with promising characteristics such as a small size, good encapsulation efficiency, sustained release profile, and improved light stability. These findings suggest the potentiality of these micelles as a delivery system for CA, thus enhancing its bioavailability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Insights toward the Development of New Drugs)
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0 pages, 5513 KiB  
Article
Synthesis of Tetracyclic Spirooxindolepyrrolidine-Engrafted Hydantoin Scaffolds: Crystallographic Analysis, Molecular Docking Studies and Evaluation of Their Antimicrobial, Anti-Inflammatory and Analgesic Activities
by Amani Toumi, Faiza I.A. Abdella, Sarra Boudriga, Tahani Y. A. Alanazi, Asma K. Alshamari, Ahlam Abdulrahman Alrashdi, Amal Dbeibia, Khaled Hamden, Ismail Daoud, Michael Knorr, Jan-Lukas Kirchhoff and Carsten Strohmann
Molecules 2023, 28(21), 7443; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules28217443 - 6 Nov 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1630
Abstract
In a sustained search for novel potential drug candidates with multispectrum therapeutic application, a series of novel spirooxindoles was designed and synthesized via regioselective three-component reaction between isatin derivatives, 2-phenylglycine and diverse arylidene-imidazolidine-2,4-diones (Hydantoins). The suggested stereochemistry was ascertained by an X-ray diffraction [...] Read more.
In a sustained search for novel potential drug candidates with multispectrum therapeutic application, a series of novel spirooxindoles was designed and synthesized via regioselective three-component reaction between isatin derivatives, 2-phenylglycine and diverse arylidene-imidazolidine-2,4-diones (Hydantoins). The suggested stereochemistry was ascertained by an X-ray diffraction study and NMR spectroscopy. The resulting tetracyclic heterocycles were screened for their in vitro and in vivo anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity and for their in vitro antimicrobial potency. In vitro antibacterial screening revealed that several derivatives exhibited remarkable growth inhibition against different targeted microorganisms. All tested compounds showed excellent activity against the Micrococccus luteus strain (93.75 µg/mL ≤ MIC ≤ 375 µg/mL) as compared to the reference drug tetracycline (MIC = 500 µg/mL). Compound 4e bearing a p-chlorophenyl group on the pyrrolidine ring exhibited the greatest antifungal potential toward Candida albicans and Candida krusei (MIC values of 23.43 µg/mL and 46.87 µg/mL, respectively) as compared to Amphotericin B (MIC = 31.25 and 62.50 µg/mL, respectively). The target compounds were also tested in vitro against the lipoxygenase-5 (LOX-5) enzyme. Compounds 4i and 4l showed significant inhibitory activity with IC50 = 1.09 mg/mL and IC50 = 1.01 mg/mL, respectively, more potent than the parent drug, diclofenac sodium (IC50 = 1.19 mg/mL). In addition, in vivo evaluation of anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity of these spirooxindoles were assessed through carrageenan-induced paw edema and acetic acid-induced writhing assays, respectively, revealing promising results. In silico molecular docking and predictive ADMET studies for the more active spirocompounds were also carried out. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Novel Insights toward the Development of New Drugs)
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