WHO CAN USE YOUR CELLS OR TISSUES FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH?

Informed consent is the process of obtaining permission from human participants to use their cells and tissues or otherwise include them in research studies. With informed consent, scientists can use human cells or tissues in experiments to learn more about the human body and to test new medicines. This article describes how these tissues are obtained, and the ethical concerns regarding the use of human tissues in research. The story of Henrietta Lacks and her immortal HeLa cell line is discussed, to demonstrate the importance of informed consent and to showcase Henrietta's valuable contributions to research and modern medicine.

Kinase Inhibitors FDA Approved 2018-2023: Drug Targets, Metabolic Pathways, and Drug-Induced Toxicities.

Small molecule kinase inhibitors are one of the fastest growing classes of drugs, which are approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for cancer and noncancer indications. As of September 2023, there were over 70 FDA-approved small molecule kinase inhibitors on the market, 42 of which were approved in the past five years (2018-2023). This minireview discusses recent advances in our understanding of the pharmacology, metabolism, and toxicity profiles of recently approved kinase inhibitors with a central focus on tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs). In this minireview we discuss the most common therapeutic indications and molecular target(s) of kinase inhibitors FDA approved 2018-2023. We also describe unique aspects of the metabolism, bioactivation, and drug-drug interaction (DDI) potential of kinase inhibitors; discuss drug toxicity concerns related to kinase inhibitors, such as drug-induced liver injury; and highlight clinical outcomes and challenges relevant to TKI therapy. Case examples are provided for common TKI targets, metabolism pathways, DDI potential, and risks for serious adverse drug reactions. The minireview concludes with a discussion of perspectives on future research to optimize TKI therapy to maximize efficacy and minimize drug toxicity. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: This minireview highlights important aspects of the clinical pharmacology and toxicology of small molecule kinase inhibitors FDA approved 2018-2023. We describe key advances in the therapeutic indications and molecular targets of TKIs. The major metabolism pathways and toxicity profiles of recently approved TKIs are discussed. Clinically relevant case examples are provided that demonstrate the risk for hepatotoxic drug interactions involving TKIs and coadministered drugs.

A Review of CYP-Mediated Drug Interactions: Mechanisms and In Vitro Drug-Drug Interaction Assessment.

Drug metabolism is a major determinant of drug concentrations in the body. Drug-drug interactions (DDIs) caused by the co-administration of multiple drugs can lead to alteration in the exposure of the victim drug, raising safety or effectiveness concerns. Assessment of the DDI potential starts with in vitro experiments to determine kinetic parameters and identify risks associated with the use of comedication that can inform future clinical studies. The diverse range of experimental models and techniques has significantly contributed to the examination of potential DDIs. Cytochrome P450 (CYP) enzymes are responsible for the biotransformation of many drugs on the market, making them frequently implicated in drug metabolism and DDIs. Consequently, there has been a growing focus on the assessment of DDI risk for CYPs. This review article provides mechanistic insights underlying CYP inhibition/induction and an overview of the in vitro assessment of CYP-mediated DDIs.

Novel Approaches to Characterize Individual Drug Metabolism and Advance Precision Medicine.

Interindividual variability in drug metabolism can significantly affect drug concentrations in the body and subsequent drug response. Understanding an individual's drug metabolism capacity is important for predicting drug exposure and developing precision medicine strategies. The goal of precision medicine is to individualize drug treatment for patients to maximize efficacy and minimize drug toxicity. While advances in pharmacogenomics have improved our understanding of how genetic variations in drug-metabolizing enzymes (DMEs) affect drug response, nongenetic factors are also known to influence drug metabolism phenotypes. This minireview discusses approaches beyond pharmacogenetic testing to phenotype DMEs-particularly the cytochrome P450 enzymes-in clinical settings. Several phenotyping approaches have been proposed: traditional approaches include phenotyping with exogenous probe substrates and the use of endogenous biomarkers; newer approaches include evaluating circulating noncoding RNAs and liquid biopsy-derived markers relevant to DME expression and function. The goals of this minireview are to 1) provide a high-level overview of traditional and novel approaches to phenotype individual drug metabolism capacity, 2) describe how these approaches are being applied or can be applied to pharmacokinetic studies, and 3) discuss perspectives on future opportunities to advance precision medicine in diverse populations. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: This minireview provides an overview of recent advances in approaches to characterize individual drug metabolism phenotypes in clinical settings. It highlights the integration of existing pharmacokinetic biomarkers with novel approaches; also discussed are current challenges and existing knowledge gaps. The article concludes with perspectives on the future deployment of a liquid biopsy-informed physiologically based pharmacokinetic strategy for patient characterization and precision dosing.

Determining sequential micellization steps of bile salts with multi-CMC modeling.

HYPOTHESIS: Bile salts exhibit complex concentration-dependent micellization in aqueous solution, rooted in a long-standing hypothesis of increasing size in bile aggregation that has historically focused on the measurement of only one CMC detected by a given method, without resolving successive stepwise aggregates. Whether bile aggregation is continuous or discrete, at what concentration does the first aggregate form, and how many aggregation steps occur, all remain as open questions. EXPERIMENTS: Bile salt critical micelle concentrations (CMCs) were investigated with NMR chemical shift titrations and a multi-CMC phase separation modeling approach developed herein. The proposed strategy is to establish a correspondence of the phase separation and mass action models to treat the first CMC; subsequent micellization steps, involving larger micelles, are then treated as phase separation events. FINDINGS: The NMR data and the proposed multi-CMC model reveal and resolve multiple closely spaced sequential preliminary, primary, and secondary discrete CMCs in dihydroxy and trihydroxy bile salt systems in basic (pH 12) solutions with a single model of one NMR data set. Complex NMR data are closely explained by the model. Four CMCs are established in deoxycholate below 100 mM (298 K, pH 12): 3.8 ± 0.5 mM, 9.1 ± 0.3 mM, 27 ± 2 mM, and 57 ± 4 mM, while three CMCs were observed in multiple bile systems, also under basic conditions. Global fitting leverages the sensitivity of different protons to different aggregation stages. In resolving these closely spaced CMCs, the method also obtains chemical shifts of these spectroscopically inaccessible (aka dark) states of the distinct micelles.