Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Feature
  • Published:

Redesigner drugs

Nature Biotechnology volume 22, pages 953–957 (2004)Cite this article

Drug development is a risky business, and the final product can have serious, sometimes deadly flaws. But by focusing on fixing those flaws, companies are catapulting themselves to profitability.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: New potential sources of protein drugs.

Bob Crimi

Figure 2: Racemic albuterol isomers.

Bob Crimi

Figure 3: Masking the amino functionality in gabapentin with an appropriate moiety affords substrate for monocarboxylate transporters.
Figure 4: Comparison of different forms of granulocyte colony stimulating factor (GCSF) in a white blood cell (WBC) response in mice (dose, 250 μg/kg).

Bob Crimi

References

  1. FDA's policy statement for the development of new stereoisomeric drugs. US Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, 1 May 1992. http://www.fda.gov/cder/guidance/stereo.htm

  2. Cundy, K.C. et al. XP13512, a novel gabapentin prodrug: 1. Design, synthesis, enzymatic conversion to gabapentin, and transport by intestinal solute transporters. J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther., published online 24 June 2004.

  3. Umana, P. et al. Engineered glycoforms of an antineuroblastoma IgG with optimized antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity activity. Nat. Biotechnol. 17, 176–180 (1999).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Preventable drug interactions: A focus on drug interactions. US Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, 31 July 2002. http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/drugReactions/default.htm - ADRs:%20Prevalence%20and%20Incidence.

  5. Sundaram, M. et al. Rational design of low molecular weight heparins with improved in vivo activity. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 100, 651–656 (2003).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. freelance writer based, New York

    Alan Dove

Authors
  1. Alan Dove
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Dove, A. Redesigner drugs. Nat Biotechnol 22, 953–957 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0804-953

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nbt0804-953

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing