Abstract
Emergence of new and medically resistant pathogenic microbes continues to escalate toward worldwide public health, wild habitat, and commercial crop and livestock catastrophes. Attempts at solving this problem with sophisticated modern biotechnologies, such as smart vaccines and microbicidal and microbistatic drugs that precisely target parasitic bacteria, fungi, and protozoa, remain promising without major clinical and industrial successes. However, discovery of a more immediate, broad spectrum prophylaxis beyond conventional epidemiological approaches might take no longer than the time required to fill a prescription at your neighborhood pharmacy. Findings from a growing body of research suggest calcium antagonists, long approved and marketed for various human cardiovascular and neurological indications, may produce safe, efficacious antimicrobial effects. As a general category of drugs, calcium antagonists include compounds that disrupt passage of Ca2+ molecules across cell membranes and walls, sequestration and mobilization of free intracellular Ca2+, and downstream binding proteins and sensors of Ca2+-dependent regulatory pathways important for proper cell function. Administration of calcium antagonists alone at current therapeutically relevant doses and schedules, or with synergistic compounds and additional antimicrobial medications, figures to enhance host immunoprotection by directly altering pathogen infection sequences, life cycles, homeostasis, antibiotic tolerances, and numerous other infective, survival, and reproductive processes. Short of being miracle drugs, calcium antagonists are welcome old drugs with new tricks capable of controlling some of the most virulent and pervasive global infectious diseases of plants, animals, and humans, including Chagas’ disease, malaria, and tuberculosis.
Keywords: Antibiotic tolerance or resistance, antimicrobial drugs, biotechnology, disease transmission and virulence, microbial pathogens and parasites, pharmaceuticals.
Call for Papers in Thematic Issues
Adaptogens—History and Future Perspectives
Adaptogens are pharmacologically active compounds or plant extracts that are associated with the ability to enhance the body’s stability against stress. The intake of adaptogens is associated not only with a better ability to adapt to stress and maintain or normalise metabolic functions but also with better mental and physical ...read more
AlphaFold in Medicinal Chemistry: Opportunities and Challenges
AlphaFold, a groundbreaking AI tool for protein structure prediction, is revolutionizing drug discovery. Its near-atomic accuracy unlocks new avenues for designing targeted drugs and performing efficient virtual screening. However, AlphaFold's static predictions lack the dynamic nature of proteins, crucial for understanding drug action. This is especially true for multi-domain proteins, ...read more
Artificial intelligence for Natural Products Discovery and Development
Our approach involves using computational methods to predict the potential therapeutic benefits of natural products by considering factors such as drug structure, targets, and interactions. We also employ multitarget analysis to understand the role of drug targets in disease pathways. We advocate for the use of artificial intelligence in predicting ...read more
Chemistry Based on Natural Products for Therapeutic Purposes
The development of new pharmaceuticals for a wide range of medical conditions has long relied on the identification of promising natural products (NPs). There are over sixty percent of cancer, infectious illness, and CNS disease medications that include an NP pharmacophore, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Since NP ...read more
Related Journals
Anti-Cancer Agents in Medicinal Chemistry
Anti-Inflammatory & Anti-Allergy Agents in Medicinal Chemistry
Current Bioactive Compounds
Current Cancer Drug Targets
Combinatorial Chemistry & High Throughput Screening
Current Cancer Therapy Reviews
Current Diabetes Reviews
Current Drug Safety
Current Drug Targets
Current Drug Therapy
Related Books
Bioactive Compounds from Medicinal Plants for Cancer Therapy and Chemoprevention
Science of Spices and Culinary Herbs - Latest Laboratory, Pre-clinical, and Clinical Studies
The Chemistry inside Spices & Herbs: Research and Development
The Chemistry inside Spices & Herbs: Research and Development
Drug Addiction Mechanisms in the Brain
The NLRP3 Inflammasome: An Attentive Arbiter of Inflammatory Response
Botanicals and Natural Bioactives: Prevention and Treatment of Diseases
Software and Programming Tools in Pharmaceutical Research
Objective Pharmaceutics: A Comprehensive Compilation of Questions and Answers for Pharmaceutics Exam Prep
Medicinal Chemistry of Drugs Affecting Cardiovascular and Endocrine Systems
30
