Current approaches in identification of a novel drug targets for drug repurposing.

Abstract

Currently, millions of drugs and their licence have been expired or will be expiring in near future. Therefore, existing USFDA approved drug can be used for treating another disease. The above-mentioned approach falls under the category of drug repurposing. Drug repurposing is an alternative strategy for finding new applications of existing USFDA approved drugs. Identification of a novel drug target is one of the go to way for drug repurposing so that new therapeutic applications of USFDA approved drugs could be determined. Recent advances in computational biology and bioinformatics can help to accelerate the same. Drug repurposing can save time and resource as compared to discovery of an entirely new drug molecule. In this chapter, we explore different strategies for discovery of a novel drug target and its uses for drug repurposing to treat disease.