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Unlocking New Biochemical Pathways: A Bridge for Drug Development in...
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Unlocking New Biochemical Pathways: A Bridge for Drug Development in Human and Animal Diseases

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Pharmaceutical Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 28 February 2025 | Viewed by 770

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Vincenzo Vestuto

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Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy, University of Salerno, Via G. Paolo II, Fisciano, 84084 Salerno, Italy
Interests: protein misfolding disorders; ER stress; antioxidants; nutraceuticals; biochemistry of cancer
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Ignazio Restivo

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Guest Editor
Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies (STEBICEF), University of Palermo, Via Archirafi, 28, 90123 Palermo, Italy
Interests: food biochemistry; nutritional biochemistry; eryptosis; RBC; antioxidants; biochemistry of cancer
Dr. Giuseppe Piegari

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, University of Naples Federico II, 84091 Naples, Italy
Interests: veterinary forensic medicine; veterinary pathology; environmental diseases
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Modern technological advances such as omics sciences, high-throughput screening, and drug repurposing methodologies are crucial for the deeper biochemical and pharmacological evaluation of bioactive compounds (BACs). Thus, these approaches are gaining popularity to elucidate new mechanisms of action of natural, semisynthetic, or completely (bio)synthetic drugs against human or animal diseases. Consequently, it is of interest to understand and study the functional and toxic mechanisms of potentially active molecules. Traditional preclinical tests are often insufficient to assess the numerous efficacy and safety impacts. The health benefits of BACs should be evaluated using isolated compounds or well-characterized mixtures or extracts in selected and validated in vitro and in vivo systems. These include their bioavailability, dose–effect levels in target tissues, and the identification of biological markers that allow for the examination or investigation of the effect of a BAC at a very early stage of disease development.

We invite you to contribute original research articles and review articles to this Special Issue, which will increase our knowledge of new drug candidates and nutraceutical mechanisms through the use of innovative techniques. Papers on the characterization of new BAC activity, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, and antibiofilm effects, with the aim of preventing, delaying, or suppressing a variety of human and animal diseases and disorders, as well as the study of drug’s toxic side effects, are welcome.

Dr. Vincenzo Vestuto
Dr. Ignazio Restivo
Dr. Giuseppe Piegari
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Life is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • drug discovery
  • omics sciences
  • veterinary sciences
  • oxidative stress
  • bioactive compounds
  • inflammation
  • cancer
  • neurodegeneration
  • cell death

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

24 pages, 5952 KiB  
Article
Network Pharmacology, Molecular Dynamics and In Vitro Assessments of Indigenous Herbal Formulations for Alzheimer’s Therapy
by Oluwafemi Adeleke Ojo, Omolola Adenike Ajayi-Odoko, Gideon Ampoma Gyebi, Damilare IyinKristi Ayokunle, Akingbolabo Daniel Ogunlakin, Emmanuel Henry Ezenabor, Adesoji Alani Olanrewaju, Oluwatobi Deborah Agbeye, Emmanuel Tope Ogunwale, Damilare Emmanuel Rotimi, Dalia Fouad, Gaber El-Saber Batiha and Oluyomi Stephen Adeyemi
Life 2024, 14(10), 1222; https://doi.org/10.3390/life14101222 - 25 Sep 2024
Viewed by 592
Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an age-associated neurodegenerative condition marked by amyloid plaques, synaptic dysfunction, and neuronal loss. Besides conventional medical care, herbal therapies, both raw and refined, have attracted researchers for their potential therapeutic effects. As a proof-of-concept, our study combined HPLC-DAD analysis [...] Read more.
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is an age-associated neurodegenerative condition marked by amyloid plaques, synaptic dysfunction, and neuronal loss. Besides conventional medical care, herbal therapies, both raw and refined, have attracted researchers for their potential therapeutic effects. As a proof-of-concept, our study combined HPLC-DAD analysis of bioactive constituents, network pharmacology, molecular dynamics (MD), molecular docking, post-MD analysis, and experimental verification to investigate the mechanisms of crude drug formulations as a therapeutic strategy for AD. We identified nine bioactive compounds targeting 188 proteins and 1171 AD-associated genes. Using a Venn diagram, we found 47 overlapping targets, forming “herb-compound-target (HCT)” interaction networks and a protein‒protein interaction (PPI) network. Simulations analyzed binding interactions among the three core targets and their compounds. MD assessed the stability of the best-ranked poses and beneficial compounds for each protein. Among the top 22 hub genes, AChE, BChE, and MAO, ranked 10, 14, and 34, respectively, were selected for further analysis. Two tetraherbal formulations, Form A and Form B, showed notable activity against AChE. Form A exhibited significant (p < 0.0001) inhibitory activity (IC50 = 114.842 ± 2.084 µg/mL) compared to Form B (IC50 = 142.829 ± 4.258 µg/mL), though weaker than galantamine (IC50 = 27.950 ± 0.122 µg/mL). Form B had significant inhibitory effects on BChE (IC50 = 655.860 ± 32.812 µg/mL) compared to Form A (IC50 = 679.718 ± 20.656 µg/mL), but lower than galantamine (IC50 = 23.126 ± 0.683 µg/mL). Both forms protected against Fe2+-mediated brain injury by inhibiting MAO. Docking identified quercetin (−10.2 kcal/mol) and myricetin (−10.1 kcal/mol) for AChE; rutin (−10.6 kcal/mol) and quercetin (−9.7 kcal/mol) for BChE; and kaempferol (−9.1 kcal/mol) and quercetin (−8.9 kcal/mol) for MAO. These compounds were thermodynamically stable based on MD analysis. Collectively, the results offer a scientific rationale for the use of these specifically selected medicinal herbs as AD medications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Unlocking New Biochemical Pathways: A Bridge for Drug Development in Human and Animal Diseases)
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