Metallodrugs are unique: opportunities and challenges of discovery and development

Drug discovery, highlighting the challenges of evaluating anticancer, antimicrobial and antiviral metallo-pharmacophores in cultured cells, and identifying their targets. We highlight advances in the application of metal-specific techniques that can assist the preclinical development, including synchrotron X-ray spectro(micro)scopy, luminescence, and mass spectrometry-based methods, combined with proteomic and genomic (metallomic) approaches. A deeper understanding of the behavior of metals and metallodrugs in biological systems is not only key to the design of novel agents with unique mechanisms of action, but also to new understanding of clinically-established drugs.

• BB
  Bruker BioSpin
• WT
  Wellcome Trust

  Awards: Z/17/Z, 209173/Z/17/Z
• DL
  Diamond Light Source
• UF
  US-UK Fulbright Commission
• UO
  University of Warwick
• CS
  China Scholarship Council
• GC
  Global Challenges Research Fund
• DF
  Directorate for Biological Sciences
• EA
  Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

  Awards: EP/P030572/1, EP/N033140/1, N033191/1, EP/N033191/1, EP/N033191/1, N033191, EP/P030572/1, N033191/, EP/P030572/
• BA
  Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council

  Award: EP/P030572/1