Discontinued drugs in 2007: anti-infectives

An assessment of the use of chimpanzees in hepatitis C research past, present and future: 1. Validity of the chimpanzee model

The USA is the only significant user of chimpanzees in biomedical research in the world, since many countries have banned or limited the practice due to substantial ethical, economic and scientific concerns. Advocates of chimpanzee use cite hepatitis C research as a major reason for its necessity and continuation, in spite of supporting evidence that is scant and often anecdotal. This paper examines the scientific and ethical issues surrounding chimpanzee hepatitis C research, and concludes that claims of the necessity of chimpanzees in historical and future hepatitis C research are exaggerated and unjustifiable, respectively. The chimpanzee model has several major scientific, ethical, economic and practical caveats. It has made a relatively negligible contribution to knowledge of, and tangible progress against, the hepatitis C virus compared to non-chimpanzee research, and must be considered scientifically redundant, given the array of alternative methods of inquiry now available. The continuation of chimpanzee use in hepatitis C research adversely affects scientific progress, as well as chimpanzees and humans in need of treatment. Unfounded claims of its necessity should not discourage changes in public policy regarding the use of chimpanzees in US laboratories.

Pharmacological profile of lurasidone, a novel antipsychotic agent with potent 5-hydroxytryptamine 7 (5-HT7) and 5-HT1A receptor activity

Lurasidone [(3aR,4S,7R,7aS)-2-[(1R,2R)-2-[4-(1,2-benzisothiazol-3-yl)piperazin-1-ylmethyl]cyclohexylmethyl]hexahydro-4,7-methano-2H-isoindole-1,3-dione hydrochloride; SM-13496] is an azapirone derivative and a novel antipsychotic candidate. The objective of the current studies was to investigate the in vitro and in vivo pharmacological properties of lurasidone. Receptor binding affinities of lurasidone and several antipsychotic drugs were tested under comparable assay conditions using cloned human receptors or membrane fractions prepared from animal tissue. Lurasidone was found to have potent binding affinity for dopamine D(2), 5-hydroxytryptamine 2A (5-HT(2A)), 5-HT(7), 5-HT(1A), and noradrenaline alpha(2C) receptors. Affinity for noradrenaline alpha(1), alpha(2A), and 5-HT(2C) receptors was weak, whereas affinity for histamine H(1) and muscarinic acetylcholine receptors was negligible. In vitro functional assays demonstrated that lurasidone acts as an antagonist at D(2) and 5-HT(7) receptors and as a partial agonist at the 5-HT(1A) receptor subtype. Lurasidone showed potent effects predictive of antipsychotic activity, such as inhibition of methamphetamine-induced hyperactivity and apomorphine-induced stereotyped behavior in rats, similar to other antipsychotics. Furthermore, lurasidone had only weak extrapyramidal effects in rodent models. In animal models of anxiety disorders and depression, treatment with lurasidone was associated with significant improvement. Lurasidone showed a preferential effect on the frontal cortex (versus striatum) in increasing dopamine turnover. Anti-alpha(1)-noradrenergic, anticholinergic, and central nervous system (CNS) depressant actions of lurasidone were also very weak. These results demonstrate that lurasidone possesses antipsychotic activity and antidepressant- or anxiolytic-like effects with potentially reduced liability for extrapyramidal and CNS depressant side effects.

Inhibiting PI3K as a therapeutic strategy against cancer

Class I PI3K is composed of heterodimeric lipid kinases regulating essential cellular functions including proliferation, apoptosis and metabolism. Class I PI3K isoforms are commonly amplified in different cancer types and the PI3Kalpha catalytic subunit, PIK3CA, has been found mutated in a variable proportion of tumours of different origin. Furthermore, PI3K has been shown to mediate oncogenic signalling induced by several oncogenes such as HER2 or Ras. These facts suggest that PI3K might be a good target for anticancer drug discovery. Today, the rise of PI3K inhibitors and their first in vivo results have cleared much of the path for the development of PI3K inhibitors for anticancer therapy. Here we will review the PI3K pathway and the pharmacological results of PI3K inhibition.