This unique book will provide an up to date and comprehensive account of the potential of peptides and proteins from animal venoms as possible therapeutics. The pharmaceutical industry has become increasingly interested in biologics from animal venoms as a potential source for therapeutic agents in recent years, with a particularly emphasis on peptides. To date six drugs derived from venom peptides or proteins have been approved by the FDA, with nine further agents currently being investigated in clinical trials. In addition to these drugs in approved or advanced stages of development, many more peptides and proteins are being studied in varying stages of preclinical development. Topics covered include chemistry and structural biology of animal venoms, proteomic and transcriptomic approaches to drug discovery, bioassays, high-throughput screens and target identification, and reptile, scorpion, spider and cone snail venoms as a platform for drug development. Case studies are used to illustrate methods and successes and highlight issues surrounding administration and other important lessons that have been learnt from the development of approved therapeutics based on venoms. The first text to focus on this fascinating area and bridging an important gap, this book will provide the reader with essential and current knowledge on this fast-developing area. Venoms to Drugs will find wide readership with researchers working in academia and industry working in all medicinal and pharmaceutical areas.

The pharmaceutical industry has become increasingly interested in biologics from animal venoms as a potential source for therapeutic agents in recent years, with a particularly emphasis on peptides. To date six drugs derived from venom peptides or proteins have been approved by the FDA, with nine further agents currently being investigated in clinical trials. In addition to these drugs in approved or advanced stages of development, many more peptides and proteins are being studied in varying stages of preclinical development. This unique book provides an up to date and comprehensive account of the potential of peptides and proteins from animal venoms as possible therapeutics. Topics covered include chemistry and structural biology of animal venoms, proteomic and transcriptomic approaches to drug discovery, bioassays, high-throughput screens and target identification, and reptile, scorpion, spider and cone snail venoms as a platform for drug development. Case studies are used to illustrate methods and successes and highlight issues surrounding administration and other important lessons that have been learnt from the development of approved therapeutics based on venoms. The first text to focus on this fascinating area and bridging an important gap, this book provides the reader with essential and current knowledge on this fast-developing area. Venoms to Drugs will find wide readership with researchers working in academia and industry working in all medicinal and pharmaceutical areas.

Targeted therapy has developed significantly in the last one and half decades, prescribing specific medications for treatment of particular diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. One of the most exciting recent developments in targeted therapies was the isolation of disease-specific molecules from natural resources, such as animal venoms and plant metabolites/toxins, for use as templates for new drug motif designs. In addition, the study of venom proteins/peptides and toxins naturally targeted mammalian receptors and demonstrated high specificity and selectivity towards defined ion channels of cell membranes. Research has also focsed intensely on receptors. The focus of this Special Issue of Toxins addressed the most recent advances using animal venoms, such as frog secretions, bee/ant venoms and plant/fungi toxins, as medicinal therapy. Recent advances in venom/toxin/immunotoxins for targeted cancer therapy and immunotherapy, along with using novel disease-specific venom-based protein/peptide/toxin and currently available FDA-approved drugs for combinationtreatments will be discussed. Finally, we included an overview of select promising toad/snake venom-based peptides/toxins potentially able to address the forthcoming challenges in this field. Both research and review articles proposing novelties or overviews, respectively, were published in this Special Issue after rigorous evaluation and revision by expert peer reviewers.

Unique analysis of drugs and poisons to facilitate testing in all laboratories even by inexperienced chemists Includes source of chemicals needed for the experiments Texts are composed by 67 experts in analyzing the respective compounds Clear and uniform structure of chapters for ease of reading The text is illustrated by many diagrams and tables

In recent years, the field of Toxinology has expanded substantially. On the one hand it studies venomous animals, plants and micro organisms in detail to understand their mode of action on targets. While on the other, it explores the biochemical composition, genomics and proteomics of toxins and venoms to understand their three interaction with life forms (especially humans), development of antidotes and exploring their pharmacological potential. Therefore, Toxinology has deep linkages with biochemistry, molecular biology, anatomy and pharmacology. In addition, there is a fast developing applied subfield, clinical toxinology, which deals with understanding and managing medical effects of toxins on human body. Given the huge impact of toxin-based deaths globally, and the potential of venom in generation of drugs for so-far incurable diseases (for example, Diabetes, Chronic Pain), the continued research and growth of the field is imminent. This has led to the growth of research in the area and the consequent scholarly output by way of publications in journals and books. Despite this ever growing body of literature within biomedical sciences, there is still no all-inclusive reference work available that collects all of the important biochemical, biomedical and clinical insights relating to Toxinology. The Handbook of Toxinology aims to address this gap and cover the field of Toxinology comprehensively.

Targeted therapy has developed significantly in the last one and half decades, prescribing specific medications for treatment of particular diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. One of the most exciting recent developments in targeted therapies was the isolation of disease-specific molecules from natural resources, such as animal venoms and plant metabolites/toxins, for use as templates for new drug motif designs. In addition, the study of venom proteins/peptides and toxins naturally targeted mammalian receptors and demonstrated high specificity and selectivity towards defined ion channels of cell membranes. Research has also focsed intensely on receptors. The focus of this Special Issue of Toxins addressed the most recent advances using animal venoms, such as frog secretions, bee/ant venoms and plant/fungi toxins, as medicinal therapy. Recent advances in venom/toxin/immunotoxins for targeted cancer therapy and immunotherapy, along with using novel disease-specific venom-based protein/peptide/toxin and currently available FDA-approved drugs for combinationtreatments will be discussed. Finally, we included an overview of select promising toad/snake venom-based peptides/toxins potentially able to address the forthcoming challenges in this field. Both research and review articles proposing novelties or overviews, respectively, were published in this Special Issue after rigorous evaluation and revision by expert peer reviewers.