title: Therapeutic potential of selenium and tellurium compounds: opportunities yet unrealised.
abstract: Despite being disparaged for their malodorous and toxic demeanour, compounds of selenium, a bio-essential element, and tellurium, offer possibilities as therapeutic agents. Herein, their potential use as drugs, for example, as anti-viral, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory agents, etc., will be surveyed along with a summary of the established biological functions of selenium. The natural biological functions of tellurium remain to be discovered.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Malaya, 50603, Kuala, Lumpur, Malaysia. Edward.Tiekink@gmail.com
authors.forename: Edward R T
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Tiekink
mesh_terms: D055808:Drug Discovery / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D009942:Organometallic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012643:Selenium / Q000737:chemistry*; D018036:Selenium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013691:Tellurium / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D018036:Selenium Compounds; D012643:Selenium; D013691:Tellurium