Böcker i Progress in Drug Research-serien i ordning

The series thus serves as an important, time-saving source of information for researchers concerned with drug research and all those who need to keep abreast of the many recent developments in the quest for new and better medicines.

The unfortunate appearance of AIDS, the manifold problems with herpesviruses and other viruses attacking humans have led to an enormous dynamism of worldwide research and to an immense increase in the corresponding literature. This title provides reviews on the development of antiviral agents in some important and widespread viral diseases.

Those connected with drug research, be they in industry, in universities or in clinics, are aware of these problems, and, as a result of this awareness, are all the more in need of an aid which will assist them in ascertaining the current position and in fixing future goals.

Volume 36 of "Progress in Drug Research" contains 5 articles and the various indexes which facilitate its use and establish the connec­ tion with the previous volumes. While all articles deal with some of the topical aspects of drug research, the contribution by Robert R. Ruffolo et al. on "Drug receptors and control of the cardiovas­ cular system: Recent advances" is indeed in its own right a mono­ graphic presentation of this important domain. The remaining four reviews provide an overview of the work in­ volved in the search for new and better medicines, with a focus on chemical, pharmacological, toxicological, biological, biochemical and molecular modeling studies. In the 31 years this series has existed, the Editor has enjoyed the help and advice of many colleagues. Readers, the authors of the in­ dividual articles, and, last but not least, the reviewers have all con­ tributed greatly to the success of PDR. Although many comments received have been favorable, it is nevertheless necessary to analyze and to reconsider the current position and the direction of such a series. So far, it has been the Editor''s aim to help spread informa­ tion on the vast domain of drug research, and to provide the reader with a tool helping him or her to keep abreast of the latest develop­ ments and trends.

Those connected with drug research, be they in industry, in universities or in clinics, are aware of these problems, and, as a result of this awareness, are all the more in need of an aid which will assist them in ascertaining the current position and in fixing future goals.

The existing and potential therapeutic applications of targeting CA cover a remarkably wide-range of diseases and disorders and have generated increasing and extensive interest in recent years.

While all articles deal with some of the topical aspects of drug research, the contribution by Al fred Burger on "Isosterism and bioisosterism in drug design" is of great value to those researchers who are engaged in drug design and wish to include isosteric considerations in establishing a work ing hypothesis.

The book is devoted to an important aspect of pharmacology and pharmaceutical chemistry, i.e. the significance of stereoisomerism of drugs for their biological effect from the point of view of their pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and toxicology. The authors review the landmarks in the development of stereochemistry and stereopharmacology. Present-day IUPAC terminology is discussed; general issues of stereoisomerism are considered including separation of racemic mixtures and asymmetric synthesis of isomers, methods of quantifying the isomers of a drug in biological material. The authors put special emphasis on general problems of the influence of stereoisomerism on pharmacological and adverse effects of drugs. A classification of drugs based on stereochemical properties of their isomers is proposed. Possibilities of interaction of stereoisomers in racemic mixtures are discussed. A considerable portion of the book is devoted to pharmacological action of the main groups of drugs whose structure includes asymmetric atoms (that is, drugs with several isomers). Detailed attention is paid to advisability of developing single isomer drugs and to the specifics of their study at the stage of preclinical and clinical trials.