Structure-activity relationship of pharmacophores and toxicophores: the need for clinical strategy.

objectivesSometimes clinical efficacy and potential risk of therapeutic and toxic agents are difficult to predict over a long period of time. Hence there is need for literature search with a view to assessing cause of toxicity and less efficacy of drugs used in clinical practice.

methodHence literatures were searched for physicochemical properties, chemical formulas, molecular masses, pH values, ionization, receptor type, agonist and antagonist, therapeutic, toxic and structure-activity relationship of chemical compounds with pharmacophore and toxicophore, with a view to identifying high efficacious and relative low toxic agents. Inclusion criteria were manuscripts published on PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed Central, Google Scholar among others, between 1960 and 2023. Keywords such as pharmacophore, toxicophore, structure-activity-relationship and disease where also searched. The exclusion criteria were the chemicals that lack pharmacophore, toxicophore and manuscripts published before 1960.

resultsFindings have shown that pharmacophore and toxicophore functional groups determine clinical efficacy and safety of therapeutics, but if they overlap therapeutic and toxicity effects go concurrently. Hence the functional groups, dose, co-administration and concentration of drugs at receptor, drug-receptor binding and duration of receptor binding are the determining factors of pharmacophore and toxicophore activity. Molecular mass, chemical configuration, pH value, receptor affinity and binding capacity, multiple pharmacophores, hydrophilic/lipophilic nature of the chemical contribute greatly to functionality of pharmacophore and toxicophore.

conclusionDaily single therapy, avoidance of reversible pharmacology, drugs with covalent adduct, maintenance of therapeutic dose, and the use of multiple pharmacophores for terminal diseases will minimize toxicity and improve efficacy.