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- Title
Amino Acids in the Development of Prodrugs.
- Authors
Vale, Nuno; Ferreira, Abigail; Matos, Joana; Fresco, Paula; Gouveia, Maria João
- Abstract
Although drugs currently used for the various types of diseases (e.g., antiparasitic, antiviral, antibacterial, etc.) are effective, they present several undesirable pharmacological and pharmaceutical properties. Most of the drugs have low bioavailability, lack of sensitivity, and do not target only the damaged cells, thus also affecting normal cells. Moreover, there is the risk of developing resistance against drugs upon chronic treatment. Consequently, their potential clinical applications might be limited and therefore, it is mandatory to find strategies that improve those properties of therapeutic agents. The development of prodrugs using amino acids as moieties has resulted in improvements in several properties, namely increased bioavailability, decreased toxicity of the parent drug, accurate delivery to target tissues or organs, and prevention of fast metabolism. Herein, we provide an overview of models currently in use of prodrug design with amino acids. Furthermore, we review the challenges related to the permeability of poorly absorbed drugs and transport and deliver on target organs.
- Subjects
PRODRUGS; AMINO acids; BIOAVAILABILITY; DOSAGE forms of drugs; ANTIBACTERIAL agents
- Publication
Molecules, 2018, Vol 23, Issue 9, p2318
- ISSN
1420-3049
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3390/molecules23092318