Drug discovery today
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Drug discovery today · Aug 2015
Review Historical ArticlePropofol as a transformative drug in anesthesia: insights from key early investigators.
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Drug discovery today · Jun 2015
ReviewCancer drug development in China: recent advances and future challenges.
Over the past 10 years, the Chinese Government, academic organizations, and biopharmaceutical companies have tried to transition the nation from a consumer of generic drugs into a developer of innovative therapies. Here, we present a timeline of recent innovative cancer drug development, with a particular focus on four case studies that have reshaped perceptions of what can be done in China. We present metrics comparing China with other countries alongside analysis of what national authorities are doing to close the gap in areas where China still lags behind the West.
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Drug discovery today · Apr 2015
ReviewImproving the predictive value of interventional animal models data.
For many chronic diseases, translational success using the animal model paradigm has reached an impasse. Using Alzheimer's disease as an example, this review employs a networks-based method to assess repeatability of outcomes across species, by intervention and mechanism. Over 75% of animal studies reported an improved outcome. ⋯ Positive outcomes across species emerged for donepezil, memantine and exercise. Repeatable positive outcomes in animals were identified for the amyloid hypothesis and three additional mechanisms. This approach supports in silico reduction of positive outcomes bias in animal studies.
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Drug discovery today · Mar 2015
ReviewRacing to define pharmaceutical R&D external innovation models.
The pharmaceutical industry continues to face fundamental challenges because of issues with research and development (R&D) productivity and rising customer expectations. To lower R&D costs, move beyond me-too therapies, and create more transformative portfolios, pharmaceutical companies are actively capitalizing on external innovation through precompetitive collaboration with academia, cultivation of biotech start-ups, and proactive licensing and acquisitions. Here, we review the varying innovation strategies used by pharmaceutical companies, compare and contrast these models, and identify the trends in external innovation. We also discuss factors that influence these external innovation models and propose a preliminary set of metrics that could be used as leading indicators of success.