Drug Repurposing and Computational Drug Discovery: Strategies and Advances

Drug repurposing is defined as identifying new pharmacological indications from old, existing, failed, investigational, already marketed, or FDA-approved drugs and prodrugs, and applying these new uses in the treatment of diseases other than the drug’s original intended therapeutic use. The application of computational techniques in discovery research not only helps in the development of drugs from leads or existing drug molecules but can also be useful for the repurposing of existing drug candidates.

This new volume presents exciting recent advances in drug repurposing and computational approaches for the discovery and development of drugs against certain difficult-to-treat and life-threatening diseases. With contributions from a global team of experts (academicians, scientists, and researchers), it explores the sophisticated tools and techniques of drug repurposing and computational drug discovery. It delivers valuable information on computational techniques, tools, and databases being utilized for drug repurposing and for identifying the uses of existing drug candidates on different emerging or deadly diseases. Drug repurposing and computational approaches addressed in the book target the discovery and development of drugs for microbial infections (bacterial, fungal, viral, COVID-19), parasitic diseases and neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), malignant diseases (cancer), inflammatory diseases, cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, and aging and neurological (CNS) disorders. In addition, the challenges and regulatory issues encountered in drug repurposing and computational drug discovery programs are looked at, offering perspectives for future directions.

Mithun Rudrapal, PhD, FIC, FICS, CChem (India), is Associate Professor at the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, School of Biotechnology & Pharmaceutical Sciences, Vignan’s Foundation for Science, Technology and Research (Deemed to be University), Guntur, India. Dr. Rudrapal has been actively engaged in teaching and research the field of pharmaceutical and allied sciences for more than 12 years. He has over 100 publications in peer-reviewed international journals to his credit and has filed a number Indian and international patents. In addition, Dr. Rudrapal is the author of dozen published or forthcoming books. Dr. Rudrapal works in the areas of medicinal chemistry, cadd, drug repurposing, phytochemistry, herbal drugs, and nanophytotherapeutics.