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## Meet the editor

Professor Farid Badria, Ph.D., DSc, leads research projects on developing new therapies for liver, skin disorders, and cancer. He was among the top 2% of the most-cited scientists in medicinal and biomolecular chemistry in 2019, 2020, and 2021, according to the lists published by Stanford University, USA. He has been a scholar with the Arab Development Fund, Kuwait, ICRO-UNESCO, Chile, and UNESCO Biotechnology, France.

Among the awards he has received are the TWAS Prize for the Public Understanding of Science, the WIPO Gold Medal for the best inventor, the State Outstanding Award in Medicine, the Outstanding Arab Scholar, Kuwait, and the Khawrazmi International Award, Iran. Prof. Badria has over 270 publications, including twelve books, has submitted 49 patents, 20 of which have received final certification, and has marketed several pharmaceutical products.

### Contents


Preface

It is now known that the causes and pathogenesis of many complex chronic diseases are usually polyfactorial: genetic, environmental, constitutive factors, or a combination of these. Many compounds have emerged as new potential therapeutic drugs for the

Poly-target molecules have recently been recognized and efficiently used in the treatment of several metabolic disorders, infectious and inflammatory diseases. Enzymes capable of catalyzing several reactions are known as promiscuous enzymes, for example, lipase, which is capable of converting lipids, phospholipids or triglycerides into the corresponding fatty acids and alcohols. Promiscuity with respect to the substrate (e.g., an aryl esterase of carboxylic acids acting on an amide bond) can be called catalytic promiscuity. A further class of promiscuity is based on the capability of small molecules (e.g., valproate, metformin, aspirin, quinine) to selectively react with many receptors, leading to diverse pharmacological

A combination of different pharmacophores can be chosen from single-target ligands and a series of compounds screened using computational models and/or optimization using *in vitro* assays. Computer-aided drug design (CADD) can be used to examine the possible interaction of ligand (drug) and receptor (target). Proteins/ antigens, as found in many infectious diseases or cancers, must be carefully selected. Homologous proteins should not be present both in the causative agent and in the

This book discusses the diverse applications of multi-target compounds in the treatment of many chronic complex health disorders. Each chapter presents up-to-date poly-pharmacology research, with particular reference to metformin, the broad-ranging

Chapter 1 presents the chemical and biological poly-pharmacology of metformin. New insights into the use of metformin for diabetic patients are introduced in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 reviews the beneficial effects of metformin on DM-related cardiovascular complications and dissects the potential molecular mechanisms. while Chapter 4 discusses glycemic and extraglycemic effects of metformin in patients with diabetes. Chapter 5 familiarizes the effects of metformin in non-diabetes related medical disorders, advances in our understanding of this drug and its pathways in health and

We hope this book will be useful to a wide range of readers, from students first learning about natural coloring compounds, to advanced clinicians, nutrition specialists,

applications of which are illustrated in the circle below.

treatment of chronic and/or complex diseases.

activities.

host.

diseases.
