Turmeric, derived from the plant Curcuma longa, is a gold-colored spice commonly used in the Indian subcontinent, not only for health care but also for the preservation of food and as a yellow dye for textiles. Curcumin, which gives the yellow color to turmeric, was first isolated almost two centuries ago, and its structure as diferuloylmethane was determined in 1910. Since the time of Ayurveda (1900 Bc) numerous therapeutic activities have been assigned to turmeric for a wide variety of diseases and conditions, including those of the skin, pulmonary, and gastrointestinal systems, aches, pains, wounds, sprains, and liver disorders. Extensive research within the last half century has proven that most of these activities, once associated with turmeric, are due to curcumin. Curcumin has been shown to exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antibacterial, antifungal, and anticancer activities and thus has a potential against various malignant diseases, diabetes, allergies, arthritis, Alzheimer's disease, and other chronic illnesses. These effects are mediated through the regulation of various transcription factors, growth factors, inflammatory cytokines, protein kinases, and other enzymes. Curcumin exhibits activities similar to recently discovered tumor necrosis factor blockers (e.g., HUMIRA, REMICADE, and ENBREL), a vascular endothelial cell growth factor blocker (e.g., AVASTIN), human epidermal growth factor receptor blockers (e.g., ERBITUX, ERLOTINIB, and GEFTINIB), and a HER2 blocker (e.g., HERCEPTIN). Considering the recent scientific bandwagon that multitargeted therapy is better than monotargeted therapy for most diseases, curcumin can be considered an ideal "Spice for Life".

Curcumin: The Indian solid gold

Microtubules are dynamic filamentous cytoskeletal proteins composed of tubulin and are an important therapeutic target in tumour cells. Agents that bind to microtubules have been part of the pharmacopoeia of anticancer therapy for decades and until the advent of targeted therapy, microtubules were the only alternative to DNA as a therapeutic target in cancer. The screening of a range of botanical species and marine organisms has yielded promising new antitubulin agents with novel properties. In the current search for novel microtubule-binding agents, enhanced tumour specificity, reduced neurotoxicity and insensitivity to chemoresistance mechanisms are the three main objectives.

https://www.hal.inserm.fr/inserm-00526519/document

Microtubule-binding agents: a dynamic field of cancer therapeutics

Adenosine receptors are major targets of caffeine, the most commonly consumed drug in the world There is growing evidence that they could also be promising therapeutic targets in a wide range of conditions, including cerebral and cardiac ischaemic diseases, sleep disorders, immune and inflammatory disorders and cancer After more than three decades of medicinal chemistry research, a considerable number of selective agonists and antagonists of adenosine receptors have been discovered, and some have been clinically evaluated, although none has yet received regulatory approval However, recent advances in the understanding of the roles of the various adenosine receptor subtypes, and in the development of selective and potent ligands, as discussed in this review, have brought the goal of therapeutic application of adenosine receptor modulators considerably closer

Adenosine receptors as therapeutic targets

In this review, we summarize the current "state of the art" of carbapenem antibiotics and their role in our antimicrobial armamentarium. Among the β-lactams currently available, carbapenems are unique because they are relatively resistant to hydrolysis by most β-lactamases, in some cases act as "slow substrates" or inhibitors of β-lactamases, and still target penicillin binding proteins. This "value-added feature" of inhibiting β-lactamases serves as a major rationale for expansion of this class of β-lactams. We describe the initial discovery and development of the carbapenem family of β-lactams. Of the early carbapenems evaluated, thienamycin demonstrated the greatest antimicrobial activity and became the parent compound for all subsequent carbapenems. To date, more than 80 compounds with mostly improved antimicrobial properties, compared to those of thienamycin, are described in the literature. We also highlight important features of the carbapenems that are presently in clinical use: imipenem-cilastatin, meropenem, ertapenem, doripenem, panipenem-betamipron, and biapenem. In closing, we emphasize some major challenges and urge the medicinal chemist to continue development of these versatile and potent compounds, as they have served us well for more than 3 decades.

Carbapenems: Past, Present, and Future

The roles of the JAK/STAT, Raf/MEK/ERK and PI3K/Akt signal transduction pathways and the BCR-ABL oncoprotein in leukemogenesis and their importance in the regulation of cell cycle progression and apoptosis are discussed in this review. These pathways have evolved regulatory proteins, which serve to limit their proliferative and antiapoptotic effects. Small molecular weight cell membrane-permeable drugs that target these pathways have been developed for leukemia therapy. One such example is imatinib mesylate, which targets the BCR-ABL kinase as well as a few structurally related kinases. This drug has proven to be effective in the treatment of CML patients. However, leukemic cells have evolved mechanisms to become resistant to this drug. A means to combat drug resistance is to target other prominent signaling components involved in the pathway or to inhibit BCR-ABL by other mechanisms. Treatment of imatinib-resistant leukemia cells with drugs that target Ras (farnysyl transferase inhibitors) or with the protein destabilizer geldanamycin has proven to be a means to inhibit the growth of resistant cells. This review will tie together three important signal transduction pathways involved in the regulation of hematopoietic cell growth and indicate how their expression is dysregulated by the BCR-ABL oncoprotein.

JAK/STAT, Raf/MEK/ERK, PI3K/Akt and BCR-ABL in cell cycle progression and leukemogenesis.

Gateways to Clinical Trials are a guide to the most recent clinical trials in current literature and congresses. The data in the following tables have been retrieved from the Clinical Trials Knowledge Area of Prous Science Integrity, the drug discovery and development portal, http://integrity.prous.com This issue focuses on the following selection of drugs: A-007, A6, adalimumab, adenosine triphosphate, alefacept, alemtuzumab, AllerVax Ragweed, amphora, anakinra, angiotensin-(1-7), anidulafungin, apomine, aripiprazole, atomoxetine hydrochloride, avanafil; BAL-8557, becatecarin, bevacizumab, biphasic insulin aspart, BMS-188797, bortezomib, bosentan, botulinum toxin type B, brivudine; Calcipotriol/betamethasone dipropionate, caspofungin acetate, catumaxomab, certolizumab pegol, cetuximab, CG-0070, ciclesonide, cinacalcet hydrochloride, clindamycin phosphate/benzoyl peroxide, cryptophycin 52, Cypher; Dabigatran etexilate, darapladib, darbepoetin alfa, decitabine, deferasirox, desloratadine, dexanabinol, dextromethorphan/quinidine sulfate, DMF, drotrecogin alfa (activated), duloxetine hydrochloride; E-7010, edaravone, efalizumab, emtricitabine, entecavir, eplerenone, erlotinib hydrochloride, escitalopram oxalate, estradiol valerate/dienogest, eszopiclone, exenatide, ezetimibe; Fondaparinux sodium, fulvestrant; Gefitinib, gestodene, GYKI-16084; Hyaluronic acid, hydralazine hydrochloride/isosorbide dinitrate; Imatinib mesylate, indiplon, insulin glargine; Juzen-taiho-to; Lamivudine/zidovudine/abacavir sulfate, L-arginine hydrochloride, lasofoxifene tartrate, L-BLP-25, lenalidomide, levocetirizine, levodopa/carbidopa/entacapone, lexatumumab, lidocaine/prilocaine, lubiprostone, lumiracoxib; MAb-14.18, mitoquidone; Natalizumab, neridronic acid, neuradiab; Olpadronic acid sodium salt, omalizumab; p53-DC vaccine, parathyroid hormone (human recombinant), peginterferon alfa-2a, peginterferon alfa-2b, pemetrexed disodium, perifosine, pimecrolimus, prasterone, prasugrel, PRO-2000, Pseudostat; R24, rasburicase, RHAMM R3 peptide, rilonacept, rosuvastatin calcium, rotavirus vaccine, rufinamide; Sabarubicin hydrochloride, SHL-749, sirolimus-eluting stent, SLx-2101, sodium butyrate, sorafenib, SU-6668; TachoSil, tadalafil, taxus, tegaserod maleate, telbivudine, tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, teriparatide, tetramethylpyrazine, teverelix, tiotropium bromide, tipifarnib, tirapazamine, tolvaptan, TransvaxTM hepatitis C vaccine, treprostinil sodium; Valganciclovir hydrochloride, valsartan/amlodipine, vandetanib, vardenafil hydrochloride hydrate, vatalanib succinate, veglin, voriconazole; Yttrium 90 (90Y) ibritumomab tiuxetan; Zileuton, zotarolimus, zotarolimus-eluting stent.

Miriam Bayes

Papers

Gateways to Clinical Trials.