Coronary Artery Disease: Therapeutics and Drug Discovery

This book provides an overview of the etiology of coronary artery disease and focuses on the main therapies and drug interventions currently available. It highlights drug pharmacology and therapeutic challenges, with a special emphasis on the underlying principles of available therapeutics and the on-going development of drugs for coronary artery disease.The book is divided into eight chapters, the first of which describes the classical mechanism of coronary artery disease and its clinical presentations. Chapter 2 lists the principles of and related evidence on the prevention and treatment of coronary artery disease. This includes diet and lifestyle management, and guidelines for the treatment of acute coronary syndrome and stable coronary artery disease. In turn, Chapter 3 describes revascularization treatments, covering percutaneous coronary interventions, coronary artery bypass grafts and thrombolysis. This chapter also addresses the main therapeutic challenges.The following chapters provide an overview of three major categories of coronary artery disease drugs, which target thrombosis (Chapter 4), lipid metabolism (Chapter 5), and hypertension (Chapter 6). Heart failure constitutes the major health burden in the late stage of coronary artery disease; accordingly, current heart failure therapeutics and related drug pharmacology are described in Chapter 7. In closing, Chapter 8 provides a summary of on-going clinical trials for coronary artery disease drug development and discusses a number of promising areas in which intensive research into new therapeutics is being pursued.Given its scope, the book will be of interest to clinicians, medical students and research scientists, as well as to pharmaceutical professionals who are seeking new therapies and drugs for coronary artery disease and related disorders.

About the Author

Dr. Miao Wang is a Professor and Head of the Laboratory of Vascular Biology and Pharmacology, State Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Disease (SKLCD), National Center for Cardiovascular Disease, Peking Union Medical College&Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences. Before joining the SKLCD, Dr. Wang worked as the principal scientist at the Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease Research Unit, Pfizer Inc. A lifetime member of the Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association, his research focuses on the mechanisms of coronary artery disease, particularly those related to inflammation and thrombosis, and on the translation of novel mechanistic insights into therapeutic innovations. He has published more than 30 research articles in the field’s leading journals.