Understanding drug targets: no such thing as bad news

Drug Discov Today. 2018 Dec;23(12):1925-1928. doi: 10.1016/j.drudis.2018.05.028. Epub 2018 May 24.

Abstract

How can small-to-medium pharma and biotech companies enhance the chances of running a successful drug project and maximise the return on a limited number of assets? Having a full appreciation of the safety risks associated with proposed drug targets is a crucial element in understanding the unwanted side-effects that might stop a project in its tracks. Having this information is necessary to complement knowledge about the probable efficacy of a future drug. However, the lack of data-rich insight into drug-target safety is one of the major causes of drug-project failure today. Conducting comprehensive target-safety reviews early in the drug discovery process enables project teams to make the right decisions about which drug targets to take forward.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Drug Delivery Systems / methods*
  • Drug Design
  • Drug Evaluation, Preclinical / methods
  • Drug Industry / methods
  • Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions / prevention & control
  • Humans