Thioredoxin system - A novel therapeutic target

Abstract

Nowadays there are numerous pathogens that have created a resistance to commonly used antibiotics and drugs. Therefore research is focused on finding new therapeutic targets and on determination of their 3D structures that could help in designing new effective substances and inhibitors. Thioredoxin system not only plays a crucial role as thiol/disulfide redox controller, it is also essential for certain organisms as the only system ensuring the redox homeostasis. It is the redox-regulating function, which makes thioredoxin and thioredoxin reductase attractive for scientific research, especially in many studies of diseases caused by redox instability. Thanks to these facts, the proteins of thioredoxin system are suitable candidates for new therapeutic purposes. In this review we summarized the basic features of the thioredoxin system, we justified why the proteins of thioredoxin system are appropriate therapeutical targets and we provided overview of the possibilities of their inhibition by several types of inhibitors.