Discussions were held on the availability of APIs and the need for new drug discoveries
The 9th International Symposium on Current Trends in Drug Discovery Research was recently held at CSIR-Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow. Dr Radha Rangrajan, Director CSIR-CDRI, Lucknow, welcomed all the dignitaries present in this mega event.
She briefed about the details of the drug discovery conference and set the tone for the participants on how they can utilise this opportunity for learning, networking and upgrading their research skills.
The Chief Guest of the program, Dr N Kalaiselvi, Director General, CSIR & Secretary DSIR addressed the audience. Dr Kalaiselvi highlighted the event’s significance as a platform for knowledge exchange. She stressed that such gatherings provide a great opportunity for researchers, industry leaders, and young minds to collaborate, fostering innovation in pharmaceuticals and healthcare.
"Science has no borders, and this programme is a gateway for global collaboration," she remarked, underlining the importance of international cooperation in research and development. She urged students to take inspiration from these discussions and work towards making India a global leader in science and technology by 2047.
The Guest of Honour of the programme, Prof Balram Bhargava, Dean and Senior Consultant, Holy Family Hospital, New Delhi & Former Director General, ICMR also addressed the audience. Dr Balram Bhargava, emphasised that India's strength in drug discovery stems from its rich heritage in chemistry, making it a global hub for pharmaceutical advancements.
Bhargava said, "The country has consistently demonstrated its ability to produce high-quality, affordable medicines, ensuring healthcare accessibility worldwide. However, challenges such as the availability of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and the need for new drug discoveries remain key areas of focus."
Further, he said that the integration of Quantum Computing and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is set to revolutionise drug discovery, accelerating research and reducing costs. Also, he said that collaboration has been a cornerstone of India's pharmaceutical success, as seen in the development of vaccines. Market shaping is equally important, ensuring that innovations reach the masses while maintaining India's leadership in cost-effective healthcare solutions.
In the inaugural programme, Prof Christopher Robert McCurdy, Professor and The Frank A Duckworth Eminent Scholar Chair, University of Florida, USA, has delivered the inaugural talk on "Seeing Pain: From the lab to the clinic, a medicinal chemist’s journey."
In his oration, he brought up the role of Sigma-1 receptors in pain processing. He further talked about the journey of the discovery and development of a tracer molecule FTC146, which acts as a selective ligand for Sigma-1 receptors. This tracer can locate sites of nerve damage in peripheral nerves, which can result in better pain management and, in certain situations, cured pain. This tracer has completed Phase 1 human clinical trials and can be a breakthrough in pain management strategies.
Later in Session II, Prof Courtney C Aldrich from the University of Minnesota, USA, discussed the novel approaches in targeting cofactor biosynthesis to develop new antimicrobial agents with novel mechanisms. He shared his efforts to design novel anti-tubercular agents against two elusive targets for which there are no effective small molecules. They discovered promising inhibitor chemotypes and optimized them for bioactivity and drug disposition characteristics using complementary techniques. He also discussed the difficulties he encountered during the optimisation campaign and how he overcame them through the integration of mechanism of action studies. He also shared his most recent research to develop next-generation Rifamycin derivatives that overcome multiple resistance mechanisms.
Dr ArindamTalukdar from CSIR-Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB), Kolkata, shared his research findings on the stimulation of agonism-antagonism in TLR7 modulators via complex interactions between chemical subunits. He noted in his presentation that agonists and antagonists frequently have overlapping binding sites in their target molecules.
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