CHIMIA (Sep 2023)

Repurposing Know-how for Drug Development: Case Studies from the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute

  • Lukas Meier,
  • Marina Antillon,
  • Christian Burri,
  • Nakul Chitnis,
  • Yvette Endriss,
  • Jennifer Keiser,
  • Sarah Moore,
  • Pie Müller,
  • Melissa Penny,
  • Till S. Voss,
  • Pascal Mäser,
  • Jürg Utzinger

DOI
https://doi.org/10.2533/chimia.2023.582
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 77, no. 9

Abstract

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In pursuing novel therapeutic solutions, drug discovery and development rely on efficiently utilising existing knowledge and resources. Repurposing know-how, a strategy that capitalises on previously acquired information and expertise, has emerged as a powerful approach to accelerate drug discovery and development processes, often at a fraction of the costs of de novo developments. For 80 years, collaborating within a network of partnerships, the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) has been working along a value chain from innovation to validation and application to combat poverty-related diseases. This article presents an overview of selected know-how repurposing initiatives conducted at Swiss TPH with a particular emphasis on the exploration of drug development pathways in the context of neglected tropical diseases and other infectious diseases of poverty, such as schistosomiasis, malaria and human African trypanosomiasis.

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