title: Approaches for minimizing metabolic activation of new drug candidates in drug discovery.
abstract: A large body of circumstantial evidence suggests that metabolic activation of drug candidates to chemically reactive electrophilic metabolites that are capable of covalently modifying cellular macromolecules may result in acute and/or immune system-mediated idiosyncratic toxicities in humans. Thus, minimizing the potential for metabolic activation of new drug candidates during the drug discovery and lead optimization stage represents a prudent strategy to help discover and develop the next generation of safe and effective therapeutic agents. In the present chapter, we discuss the scientific methodologies that currently are available to industrial pharmaceutical scientists for assessing and minimizing metabolic activation during drug discovery, their attributes and limitations, and future scientific directions that have the potential to help advance progress in this field. We also propose a roadmap that should help utilize the armamentarium of available scientific tools in a logical way and contribute to addressing metabolic activation issues in the drug discovery-setting in a rapid, scientifically appropriate, and resource-conscious manner.
authors.affiliation: Department of Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics, Merck Research Laboratories, Rahway, New Jersey, USA. sanjeev_kumar@merck.com
authors.forename: Sanjeev
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.forename: Kaushik
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mitra
authors.forename: Kelem
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kassahun
authors.forename: Thomas A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Baillie
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001711:Biotransformation; D015195:Drug Design; D055808:Drug Discovery / Q000379:methods; D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; D004342:Drug Hypersensitivity / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D064420:Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions; D006801:Humans; D023421:Models, Animal; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D013045:Species Specificity; D013329:Structure-Activity Relationship; D018675:Toxicity Tests