Plasmodium Kinases as Potential Drug Targets for Malaria: Challenges and Opportunities.

ABSTRACT: Protein and phosphoinositide kinases have been successfully exploited as drug targets in various disease areas, principally in oncology. In malaria, several protein kinases are under investigation as potential drug targets, and an inhibitor of Plasmodium phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase type III beta (PI4KIIIβ) is currently in phase 2 clinical studies. In this Perspective, we review the potential of kinases as drug targets for the treatment of malaria. Kinases are known to be readily druggable, and many are essential for parasite survival. A key challenge in the design of Plasmodium kinase inhibitors is obtaining selectivity over the corresponding human orthologue(s) and other human kinases due to the highly conserved nature of the shared ATP binding site. Notwithstanding this,

SUBMITTER: Arendse LB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7961706 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature