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Abstract
There are numerous proteases of pathogenic organisms that are currently targeted for
therapeutic intervention along with many that are seen as potential drug targets.
This review discusses the chemical and biological makeup of some key druggable proteases
expressed by the five major classes of disease causing agents, namely bacteria, viruses,
fungi, eukaryotes, and prions. While a few of these enzymes including HIV protease
and HCV NS3-4A protease have been targeted to a clinically useful level, a number
are yet to yield any clinical outcomes in terms of antimicrobial therapy. A significant
aspect of this review discusses the chemical and pharmacological characteristics of
inhibitors of the various proteases discussed. A total of 25 inhibitors have been
considered potent and safe enough to be trialed in humans and are at different levels
of clinical application. We assess the mechanism of action and clinical performance
of the protease inhibitors against infectious agents with their developmental strategies
and look to the next frontiers in the use of protease inhibitors as anti-infective
agents.