Challenges and recent progress in drug discovery for tropical diseases

• Published in: Nature (London) Vol. 559; no. 7715; pp. 498 - 506
• Main Authors: De Rycker, Manu, Baragaña, Beatriz, Duce, Suzanne L., Gilbert, Ian H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.07.2018; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/154/555; 692/699/255; 692/699/255/1715; Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; AIDS; Anemia; Animals; Beef cattle; Biochemistry; Blindness; Coinfection; Dehydration (Physiology); Diseases; Drug development; Drug discovery; Drug Discovery - trends; Drug resistance; Drug therapy; Drugs; HIV; Human immunodeficiency virus; Humanities and Social Sciences; Humans; Infections - drug therapy; Infections - microbiology; Infections - parasitology; Infections - virology; Innovations; Medical schools; Morbidity; multidisciplinary; Nausea; R&D; Rash; Research & development; Review; review-article; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Studies; Tropical Climate; Tropical diseases; Tropical Medicine - trends; Universities and colleges
• ISSN: 0028-0836; 1476-4687; 1476-4687
• DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0327-4

Infectious tropical diseases have a huge effect in terms of mortality and morbidity, and impose a heavy economic burden on affected countries. These diseases predominantly affect the world’s poorest people. Currently available drugs are inadequate for the majority of these diseases, and there is an urgent need for new treatments. This Review discusses some of the challenges involved in developing new drugs to treat these diseases and highlights recent progress. While there have been notable successes, there is still a long way to go.