Metabolomics

Tools for Target Identification, Validation and Biomarker Discovery By Dr Paul Denny-Gouldson As automation in the drug discovery arena increases then so does the amount and complexity of the data. We discuss an emerging solution that now integrates various technologies to provide a scientific data intelligence tool giving scientists increasing scope to identify, evaluate and […]

Personalised Medicine – Technological innovation and patient empowerment or exuberant hyperbole? By Adam W. Culbertson, Dr Stephen J. Valentine and Dr Stephen Naylor The current paradigm of modern healthcare focuses on patient symptoms, subsequent diagnosis and corresponding treatment of the specific disease(s). Escalating healthcare costs and a trial and error approach to diagnosing and treating […]

The Genome as a Tool for Drug Discovery and Development the Case for Embracing Complexity By Dr Kenneth C. Carter Conventional drug discovery and development is centred on a paradigm in which ‘validated’ targets are subjected to in vitro screens for the identification of new drug candidates. Molecular profiling using genomic approaches is becoming an […]

By Dr George G. Harrigan The potential of metabolomics, a systems approach to biochemical pathway analysis, to yield scientific and commercial benefits to healthcare and biotechnology enterprises is increasingly recognised. This article discusses current applications and future developments and places an emphasis on incorporation of metabolomics within all aspects of the value chain of drug […]

The Role of the Medicinal Chemist in the Drug Discovery Process: current status and future prospects By Dr Stevan W Djuric The need for the pharmaceutical industry to produce a constant stream of new NCEs has never been more paramount but with constantly changing R&D paradigms what is the role of the modern medicinal chemist? […]

The future of the CRO industry By Gilbert Godin The pressures on Pharma/Biotech to control R&D costs while improving the yield of new, approvable drugs indicate an even greater reliance on outsourcing. So what will the next five years bring for the CRO industry? Five years ago, as we approached the new millennium, the prevailing […]

Applying the semantic web to drug discovery and development By Dr Eric Neumann There is much happening in drug development these days: new target classes, increasing costs, new forms of high throughput screening, and the promise of personalised medicine. But of all the issues, the one that now takes centre stage (and directly impacts the […]

The search for validated biomarkers in the face of biosystems complexity By Professor Ian Humphery-Smith and Will Dracup As the pharmaceutical industry is all too well aware, the genomics and postgenomic sciences have delivered an excessive number of drug targets few of which have been well validated. Indeed, apart from a few rare exceptions, genomics […]

Overview of biomarkers in disease, drug discovery and development By Professor Stephen Naylor The pharmaceutical industry and the healthcare sector are both confronted with expensive technological innovation, escalating costs and pointed questions about productivity and efficiency. The parallels between the problems of producing new therapeutic agents and treating patients afflicted with poorly understood diseases are […]

Metabonomics – A generic platform for the investigation of drug toxicity, altered gene function and disease processes By Professor Jeremy K. Nicholson Metabonomics can offer one of the most complete solutions to tackling one of the pharmaceutical industry’s biggest problems attrition. This article discusses the scope and uses of metabonomics in different areas of the […]