Abstract

IMPORTANCE OF CHIRALITY IN DRUG DEVELOPMENT: - CASE OF TERATOGENIC COMPOUND THALIDOMIDE AND IT’S EFFECTS

Amolika Roy*

ABSTRACT

We have been taught chirality in chemistry in school textbooks as- “a molecule is called to be a chiral if it cannot be superimposed on its mirror image by any combination of rotation, translation, and some conformational change”. So basically a compound is said to be chiral if it contains a asymmetric centre (chiral atom or chiral centre) and thus can occur in two non-superimposable mirror image forms enantiomers. (Pair of molecules that exist in two forms that are mirror images of one another also are chemically identical). Now what they don’t teach us is the importance of these chiral compounds in biological system. Chirality has become a major part for the synthesis and development of drugs. Most of the drugs discovered are chiral. The pharmacology activity of drugs depends mainly on its interaction with biological targets such as proteins, nucleic acids, bio membranes. One enantiomer of a chiral drug may be of medicinal importance for a particular disease whereas; another enantiomer of the molecule may be not only inactive but can also be toxic. Hence chirality plays an essential role in drugs. Therefore synthesizing compound as single enantiomer is crucial in the design and synthesis of drugs. Now talking about teratogenic compounds and its relation to chirality, basically teratogens are refer broadly to any agent capable of eliciting directly or indirectly deleterious effects on developing embryos or fetues to an extend that permanent or semi-permanent defects are manifested subsequently to the fetal development period. Defects include not only dysmorphic phenomena but also permanent or semi-permanent growth, retardation, neoplasm and functional deficit involving the nervous system e.g. behavioral, mental or motor deficits, the reproductive system, the immunologic system, metabolic systems or any of the individual organs comprising the organism i.e. kidney heart or lungs. Such permanent or semi-permanent deleterious squeals are referred to as terata or simply as birth defects.

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