New method to develop more efficient drugs

Scientists have developed a new approach to develop highly-potent drugs which could overcome current shortcomings of low drug efficacy and multi-drug resistance in patients.

The study that appeared in Nanomedicine identified a new mechanism of targeting multi-subunit complexes that are critical to the function of viruses, bacteria or cancer.

Thus the mechanism will reduce or possibly even eliminating their resistance to targeted drugs.

"Efficacy is the key in drug development," said Peixuan Guo, director of Britain's Nanobiotechnology Centre and one of the top nanobiotechnology experts in the world.

"Inhibiting multisubunit targets works similar to the series-circuit Christmas decorating light chains; one broken bulb turns off the entire lighting system," Guo noted.

By targeting RNA, this method allows for killing or disabling the RNA or protein without requiring the inhibition of multiple pathways that might be used by the organism to remain active and viable.

Using this method, a single subunit targeting to the target RNA or protein subunits that is unique and assenting for the organism, the organism will be disabled or die and thus, no longer able to cause disease.

"One of the vexing problems in the development of drugs is drug resistance," said Tim Tracy, former Dean of the UK College of Pharmacy and current UK provost.

"Guo's study has identified a new mechanism of efficiently inhibiting biological processes that are critical to the function of the disease-causing organism, such that resistance is minimized or eliminated," Tracy said.