Preface

The last decade observed a pivotal shift from the conventional methods of research and development to the conglomerate effects of the applied fields of biological sciences. This shift emerged as a beam of hope for the pharmaceutical industry as the latest approach of “Drug Repurposing”, which seeks to reutilise existing drugs for treating new disorders. Since its inception to its current eminence in pharmaceutical research, this book navigates through the past, present, and future of drug repurposing. By delving deeper into the metamorphic abilities of this approach, readers will gain insights into its wide-ranging applications and how it can bridge the gap between the pace of drug development and rigorous research scrutiny. The journey of drug repurposing dates back centuries, with serendipitous discoveries leading to the realization of a drug's alternative therapeutic benefits. From aspirin's transition from pain relief to colorectal cancer prevention to amantadine’s evolution from an antiviral drug to a treatment for Parkinson’s disease, historical anecdotes underscore the inherent value in exploring existing drugs for new purposes.

This interdisciplinary book welcomes scientists, scholars, academicians, computational biologists, and medical personnel to converge their knowledge in developing the wide arena of drug repurposing. By eliminating the highly time-consuming screening of hit and lead compounds in pharmacology, drug repurposing addresses the unmet medical needs within a minimum time span. The field of drug repurposing is an amalgamation of both computational and experimental techniques encompassing procedures like genetic association, pathway mapping, retrospective clinical analysis, molecular docking, and binding assays to identify target molecules, phenotypic screening and others. Traditional drug discovery is associated with resource-intensive elements such as capital, multiple clinical phase trials, probable chances of failures and numerous false positive results. To overcome these challenges, drug repurposing has emerged as a strategic avenue in the contemporary landscape. "Reviving Hope" sheds light on recent success stories, innovative methodologies, and collaborative efforts, driving this approach to become a prevailing practice in the pharmaceutical industry. The salient features of drug repurposing involve modifying conventional drugs to better treat the present untreatable diseases. This caters to patient-specific treatment by designing personalized drugs, thereby ruling out chances of failure. This approach brings under one roof a wide range of applied biological and other sciences, including computational biology, artificial intelligence, genomic profiling, proteomics, pharmacology, systems biology, and immunological fields. By exploring the potential implications of these technological advancements, this book provides a glimpse into the transformative role drug repurposing is poised to play in shaping the future of medicine.

Aim:

1. Learn in depth how repurposed medications can be a viable answer by leveraging well-known compounds for new indications, avoiding the costs and delays of developing new cancer treatments.

2. Discover how cutting-edge approaches, such as molecular docking for effective drug-protein interaction prediction, high-throughput screening, computational modeling, and signature-based tactics that take advantage of gene expression patterns, are propelling advances in drug repurposing.

3. Find ways to work together and conduct multidisciplinary research in the area of medication repurposing to promote creativity and hasten the development of new treatments.

4. Explain the various molecular pathways through which repurposed medications impact cancer, including the induction of apoptosis, the suppression of angiogenesis, the modification of the cell cycle, and the disruption of cancer cell metabolism.

5. Learn more about the potential uses of drug repurposing to improve patient outcomes, meet unmet medical needs, and change the pharmaceutical industry.

Scope:

The impetus behind this book stems from a recognition of the untapped potential inherent in existing drugs and the urgent need to overcome the barriers hindering their repurposing. The budding success of drug repurposing is characterized by its high speed, specificity, and transformative impact in the realm of healthcare. This new age technique has come in handy in treating various incurable neurodegenerative ailments such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as other life-threatening disorders such as cancer, with minimal side effects and high-yielding outcomes. With the combination and sharing of multidisciplinary knowledge from intersecting fields of biological and technological sciences, such as medicine and clinical sciences, pharmacology, computational biology, bioinformatics, and drug discovery, the emergence of drug repurposing has been possible. However, the concept of drug repurposing faces ethical and legal challenges, funding restrictions, strict regulatory frameworks, and limited market exposure. Nonetheless, drug repurposing has been continuing to overcome these hurdles through rigorous research and development, casting aside all prior ethical concerns. Drug repurposing involves the use of new-age technologies, and understanding of drug-protein interactions through molecular docking, and subsequent changes in cell lines through phenotypic screening. By employing molecular markers, drug signatures can be matched to design patient-specific, customized treatment regimens. The results obtained from practicing the various technological aids can be used for future treatment procedures and to alleviate and strengthen the backbone of the healthcare system.

The prominence of drug repurposing came into the spotlight during the COVID-19 pandemic, in the course of which, repurposed drugs were utilized to treat comorbidities. Prior to this, repurposed drugs were widely used to treat cancer. Conventional cancer drugs are associated with multiple side effects, low survival rates, and an inability to arrest cancer progression due to the development of drug resistance. This highlighted the need for the development of new and improved cancer drugs. However, investigating new drugs is time-consuming as it requires the screening of potential drug candidates, stringent clinical trials, approval of associated ethical and legal bodies, and a proper marketing strategy. Hence, the focus shifted towards a less resource-intensive alternative – drug repurposing. With its progress, studies and research have shown drug repurposing to be beneficial in treatment regimens of neurodegenerative diseases – Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. This book entails the chronology of events that led to the establishment of drug repurposing as a poignant practice in the healthcare system. Further, it elicits the details of the interdisciplinary fields that led to its discovery. By compiling insights from leading experts, synthesizing the latest research findings, and offering practical guidance for researchers, clinicians, and policymakers, this book aims to catalyze further progress in drug repurposing and contribute to the collective effort to advance global health outcomes.