Journal of Medicinal Chemistry
Indexed In
Journal Highlights
Chiral Drug Synthesis and Stereochemistry
Covalent Inhibitors and Irreversible Drugs
Prodrug Strategies and Design
Radiopharmaceutical Chemistry
Nanotechnology in Drug Development
Chemical Biology Tools in Target Discovery
Drug Repurposing Repositioning
Drug Receptor Interactions
Ligand Based Drug Design
Structure Based Drug Design
Combinatorial Chemistry
Pharmacophores
Lipinskis Rule of Five and Drug Likeness
Isosterism and Bioisosterism
Click Chemistry in Drug Discovery
Asymmetric Synthesis in Drug Development
Biologics and Monoclonal Antibodies
RNA Based Therapeutics
Proteolysis Targeting Chimeras
Green Chemistry in Medicinal Chemistry
Chemoinformatics and Machine Learning
In Vitro and In Vivo Pharmacology
Animal Models in Drug Testing
Transporters in Drug Delivery
Neuropharmacology and Neurochemistry
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Prodrug Strategies and Design
Prodrug strategies involve modifying active drugs into inactive or less active derivatives to improve their pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics properties. These compounds are converted into the active form in the body through enzymatic or chemical processes. Prodrug design aims to enhance solubility, stability, bioavailability, and targeted delivery. Common strategies include masking polar groups or attaching promoieties that aid in absorption or site-specific activation. Prodrugs are especially useful for improving oral or transdermal delivery. Examples include codeine (converted to morphine) and Val acyclovir (a prodrug of acyclovir). Rational prodrug design integrates knowledge of metabolism, enzyme specificity, and tissue targeting. This approach expands the therapeutic potential of existing drugs.