Invited Speaker

From Bench to Bedside: Discovery of Boceprevir, A Novel Antiviral Agent for Treatment of Hepatitis C Virus
F. George Njoroge
USA

Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) infection is the major cause of chronic liver disease worldwide, leading to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma which affects more than 170 million people worldwide. Currently, the only therapeutic regimens are subcutaneous interferon-a or PEG-interferon-a alone or in combination with oral ribavirin. Although combination therapy is reasonably successful with the majority of genotypes, its efficacy against the predominant genotype (genotype 1) affecting North America, Europe and Japan is moderate at best, with only about 40% of the patients showing sustained virological response. In this presentation, we will demonstrate the collaborative efforts between, medicinal and structural chemistry, biology, and drug metabolism culminating in the discovery of SCH 503034, a novel, potent, selective, orally bioavailable NS3 protease inhibitor currently in Phase III clinical trials for treatment of hepatitis C viral infections.