Design of Caspase Inhibitors as Potential Clinical Agents

Caspases (cysteine aspartyl proteases) represent one of the most specific protease families described to date. As caspase family members are involved in pro-inflammatory responses, inhibition of caspase activity represents a novel yet core approach to disease treatment. Design of Caspase Inhibitors as Potential Clinical Agents discusses the role of caspases in inducing cell death. It reviews recent efforts to develop small molecule inhibitors that are capable of modulating caspase activity. The text also examines the difficulties encountered in transitioning small molecule inhibitors from the lab to clinical use, and discusses how these challenges can best be overcome to allow continued progress.

Presents the Therapeutic Potential for Caspase Inhibitors: Present and Future

Caspases represent one of the most specific protease families described to date. These extremely important enzymes are crucial to the destruction of aberrant cells – the body’s self-protection mechanism for warding off the growth of abnormal cells, many of which can promote cancer. Design of Caspase Inhibitors as Potential Clinical Agents introduces cutting-edge evidence regarding caspases’ role in pro-inflammatory responses. New research now shows that the inhibition of caspase function is a critical component for the treatment of many diseases, including:

• Arthritic and neurological disorders











• Lung disease











• Hereditary fever syndromes











• Inflammatory bowel and skin diseases











• Sepsis











• Liver fibrosis

Outlines Efforts to Develop Molecule Inhibitors for Caspase Activity Transformation

Under the editorial guidance of authoritative inflammatory disease, small molecule discovery, and apoptosis researchers, the book organizes the wide array of caspase literature into one convenient resource. It also summarizes the relative difficulty of transitioning a caspase small molecule inhibitor from the lab to the clinic and suggests approaches to circumvent this difficulty. Taking a novel, yet core approach to disease treatment, this seminal work sets the stage to combat a slew of debilitating diseases through groundbreaking drug development.