NYMC Faculty Publications
Exploring New Drug Targets for Type 2 Diabetes: Success, Challenges and Opportunities
Author Type(s)
Faculty
DOI
10.3390/biomedicines10020331
Journal Title
Biomedicines
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-31-2022
Department
Pharmacology
Keywords
diabetes mellitus, drug development, drug discovery, lead molecules, new targets, type 2 diabetes
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences
Abstract
There are substantial shortcomings in the drugs currently available for treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The global diabetic crisis has not abated despite the introduction of new types of drugs and targets. Persistent unaddressed patient needs remain a significant factor in the quest for new leads in routine studies. Drug discovery methods in this area have followed developments in the market, contributing to a recent rise in the number of molecules. Nevertheless, troubling developments and fresh challenges are still evident. Recently, metformin, the most widely used first-line drug for diabetes, was found to contain a carcinogenic contaminant known as N-nitroso dimethylamine (NDMA). Therefore, purity and toxicity are also a big challenge for drug discovery and development. Moreover, newer drug classes against SGLT-2 illustrate both progress and difficulties. The same was true previously in the case of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors. Furthermore, researchers must study the importance of mechanistic characteristics of novel compounds, as well as exposure-related hazardous aspects of current and newly identified protein targets, in order to identify new pharmacological molecules with improved selectivity and specificity.
Recommended Citation
Kanwal, A., Kanwar, N., Bharati, S., Srivastava, P., Singh, S. P., & Amar, S. (2022). Exploring New Drug Targets for Type 2 Diabetes: Success, Challenges and Opportunities. Biomedicines, 10 (2). https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines10020331
