A nanofiber Murray membrane with antibacterial properties for high efficiency oily particulate filtration

Particulate air pollution represented by PM2.5 is one of the biggest environmental challenges in the 21st century. Especially in 2020, the global outbreak of COVID-19 has brought new challenges to melt-blown filter materials, such as the attenuation of filtration efficiency with breathing, even no filtration effect for viruses as their smaller diameter, the sharp decline of filter efficiency after oily filtration cycle, and its limit in some explosive occasions. Here, using the diameter difference of polystyrene (PS), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) and nylon 6(PA6) fibers, we report a multistage structure nanofiber membrane (PS/PVDF/PA6&Ag MSNMs) with high efficiency, low resistance and antibacterial effect by constructing gradient pore structure and introducing silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs), overcoming the above defects. The average filtration efficiency of PS/PVDF/PA6&Ag MSNMs for diisooctyl sebacate (DEHS) monodisperse particles from 0.2 μm to 4.9 μm was 99.88%, and the pressure drop was only 128 Pa. After repeated circulation for 100 times, the filtration efficiency and pressure drop remained stable. Above all, the antibacterial nanofiber membrane with high efficiency and low resistance has been preliminarily constructed, the future research will further focus on the performance after circulation. © 2023 Elsevier Ltd

A new short synthesis route for favipiravir and its analogue: Their tautomerization behaviour

The study of tautomerism in biologically relevant heterocycles is essential, as it directly affects their chemical properties and biological function. Lactam-lactim tautomerization in pyridine/pyrazine derivatives is such a phenomenon. Favipiravir, a pyrazine derivative, is an essential antiviral drug molecule having notable performance against SARS-CoV-2. Along with a better yielding synthetic method for favipiravir, we have also investigated the lactam-lactim tautomerization of favipiravir and its analogous molecules. Most of these molecules were crystalized and studied for various interactions in their lattice. Many interesting supramolecular interactions such as hydrogen bonding, pi-pi stacking and halogen bonding were revealed during the analysis. Some of these structures show interesting F-F halogen bonding and water channels in their solid state.Copyright © 2022 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Longitudinal analyses using 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography with computed tomography as a measure of COVID-19 severity in the aged, young, and humanized ACE2 SARS-CoV-2 hamster models.

This study compared disease progression of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) in three different models of golden hamsters: aged (≈60 weeks old) wild-type (WT), young (6 weeks old) WT, and adult (14-22 weeks old) hamsters expressing the human-angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (hACE2) receptor. After intranasal (IN) exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 Washington isolate (WA01/2020), 2-deoxy-2-[fluorine-18]fluoro-D-glucose positron emission tomography with computed tomography (18F-FDG PET/CT) was used to monitor disease progression in near real time and animals were euthanized at pre-determined time points to directly compare imaging findings with other disease parameters associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Consistent with histopathology, 18F-FDG-PET/CT demonstrated that aged WT hamsters exposed to 105 plaque forming units (PFU) developed more severe and protracted pneumonia than young WT hamsters exposed to the same (or lower) dose or hACE2 hamsters exposed to a uniformly lethal dose of virus. Specifically, aged WT hamsters presented with a severe interstitial pneumonia through 8 d post-exposure (PE), while pulmonary regeneration was observed in young WT hamsters at that time. hACE2 hamsters exposed to 100 or 10 PFU virus presented with a minimal to mild hemorrhagic pneumonia but succumbed to SARS-CoV-2-related meningoencephalitis by 6 d PE, suggesting that this model might allow assessment of SARS-CoV-2 infection on the central nervous system (CNS). Our group is the first to use (18F-FDG) PET/CT to differentiate respiratory disease severity ranging from mild to severe in three COVID-19 hamster models. The non-invasive, serial measure of disease progression provided by PET/CT makes it a valuable tool for animal model characterization.

The Pharmaceutical Industry in 2022: An Analysis of FDA Drug Approvals from the Perspective of Molecules.

While 2021 ended with the world engulfed in the COVID-19 Omicron wave, 2022 has ended in almost all countries, except China, with COVID-19 being likened to the flu. In this context, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized only 37 new drugs this year compared to an average of 52 in the last four years. Thus 2022 is the second lowest harvest after 2016 in the last six years. This ranking may be transient and will be confirmed in the coming years. In this regard, the reduction in the number of drugs accepted by the FDA this year applies only to the so-called small molecules as there has been no variation in the respective numbers of biologics or TIDES (peptides and oligonucleotides). Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) continue to be the class with the most drugs authorized (9), while proteins/enzymes (5) and an antibody-drug conjugate complete the biologics harvest. In 2022, five TIDES and seven drugs inspired by natural products have received the green light, thus showing the same tendency as in previous years. Finally, pharmaceutical agents with nitrogen aromatic heterocycles and/or fluorine atoms continue to be predominant among small molecules this year. Furthermore, three drugs have been approved for imaging, reinforcing the trend in recent years for this class of treatments. A keyword in 2022 is bispecificity since four drugs have this property (two mAbs, one protein, and one peptide). Herein, the 37 new drugs approved by the FDA in 2022 are analyzed. On the basis of chemical structure alone, these drugs are classified as the following: biologics (antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, proteins/enzymes), TIDES (peptide and oligonucleotides), combined drugs, natural products; nitrogen aromatic heterocycles, fluorine-containing molecules, and other small molecules.

Printed Capacitive Immunoassay for Detecting SARS-CoV-2 Viral Particles

The key to fight against a global pandemic such as COVID-19 is to have low-cost, reliable and fast response diagnostic tools. Electronic biosensors are preferred because of their ease of integration into current centralized health care networks and integration with modern point-of-care testing (POCT) devices. Printed electronic sensors provide a sensitive and reliable diagnostic platform to aid in controlling transmissible diseases. In this work, we demonstrate a fully printed capacitive biosensor. The sensor uses coplanar electrodes, coupled with capture antibodies immobilized on microporous Polyvinylidene-fluoride (PVDF) film to detect the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in spiked buffer solutions. Antibody immobilization on PVDF surface is confirmed with confocal fluorescent imaging microscopy. Gold nanoparticle (GNP) tagged detection antibodies are also introduced to provide increased sensitivity. The gold nanoparticles provide a reflectance layer which leads to increased capacitance. This increased capacitance can be measured directly and has demonstrated the ability to screen for spiked samples with statistical significance. This fully printed capacitive immunoassay has the potential to be used as a transmissible disease screening and vaccine efficacy assessment tool for resource-limited areas. IEEE

Impact of Nationwide Lockdown During Covid-19 on Water Quality of Yamuna River in District Mathura (U. P.)

COVID-19 is a pandemic that affected the majority of countries of the world. After the COVID-19 outburst, the Indian Government declared the complete lockdown starting on the night of 24 March 2020. The lockdown period is in its 4th phase. In the recent year it has been very fascinating to remind that the behaviour in the environment is vastly optimistic and all layers of the earth are under the repairing mode during the lockdown. With these healing environments, the conditions of the Yamuna River water in Mathura (polluted river) have also been found to be upgrading. In this present concern, we work on the concentration of BOD, COD, pH, and other physicochemical parameters for the study, i.e. TDS, Chlorides, Alkalinity, Magnesium, Calcium, Fluoride, Sulphate, Nitrate, Hardness and Total Coliform of Yamuna River (Mathura), respectively, which was found to be reduced as compared to pre-lockdown concentration, i.e. 57, 57, 3.6, 11.7, 5.1, 7.4, 9.5, 4.2, 62.5, 14.8, 33.3, and 4.5%. In the present work, the water of Yamuna River was analysed during the lockdown phase in ITL Labs Pvt. Ltd., Delhi (India). Yamuna River showed a better quality of water during the lockdown. As per results and trend analysis, the value was reducing in this lockdown phase, which is a matter of concern. Major locations of Yamuna water sample collection are Mathura region, i.e. adjacent to the road 50 m from Adda village in Naujheel of Mathura district in Uttar Pradesh. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

Direct Sunlight Driven In2S3 Thin Film Based Water Treatment Proto-Type

A multi-faceted energy intensive technology that can be used for water disinfection and synthesis of electrolysed water (EW) is the need of the hour to achieve a sustainable post COVID 19 water management strategy. Direct sunlight driven processes are legislatively green technologies and hold the key in environmental sustenance. The development of a laboratory proto type reactor powered by a photovoltaic module for the treatment open source river water is described in this paper. This paper reports on the efficacy of the developed proto type technology for multipurpose application namely: (1) the production of Electrolysed water (EW) in a cost efficient manner using direct sunlight and (2) the removal of organic impurity from water using direct sunlight without the use of any photo catalyst or membrane. The prototype reactor utilizes chemical spray pyrolysis deposited highly photo-conducting indium sulphide thin films grown on fluorine doped tin oxide (F:SnO2) substrate (coated using chemical spray pyrolysis technique in-house) as the photo electrode. Dissolved organic matter arising in river water has distinctive fluorescence properties, and this research has utilized it to identify dissolved organic substances in both random samples and treated water. The work proves that photovoltaic module powered electrolytic reactors consisting of In2S3 electrodes can be used for treatment of river water. A diaphragm free, energy intensive route for the production of electrolysed water with the use of non-hazardous NaCl as the electrolyte has been demonstrated here. We conclude that In2S3 electrodes can be used for non-photo catalytic reduction of humic-derived impurities in river water. These results are also encouraging on the prospects of treating Nitrates present in the river water. The likes of techniques as described in this report that do not use photo catalyst or membranes may pave way for real time photovoltaic module powered floating reactors that can decontaminate water bodies on a large scale. The technique used by us demonstrates that a chlorine free route can be optimized for the synthesis of EW eliminating the production of large amounts of wastewater with high levels of biological oxygen demand (BOD).

Advances in magnetic resonance tomography

This chapter sets out the most promising modern directions of research in the field of magnetic resonance imaging. These include multinuclear studies aimed at the exploration of magnetic resonance (MR) image contrast induced by exogeneous (fluorine-19, hyperpolarized noble gases) and “built-in” (phosphorus-31, sodium-23) contrast agents for potential clinical benefits. The chapter covers electrodynamic elements of MR scanners that increase signal-to-noise ratio in low-field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), hyperpolarization techniques that allow several orders of magnitude improved sensitivity in low-field MRI, as well as MRI methods to study dynamics of pharmaceuticals introduced into the body. Special attention is given to MRI methods based upon magnetization transfer aimed at the detection of myelination defects of axons in the brain and functional MRI characterizing brain dynamic response to external stimuli. © 2022 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.

Abstracts from The Aerosol Society Drug Delivery to the Lungs 32

The proceedings contain 58 papers. The topics discussed include: assessment of aerosol drug delivery during the escalation of treatment for a simulated COVID-19 adult patient;development of a prototype of an aerosolization device for dry powders to improve in vitro cell-based assays in the context of lung delivery;surface acoustic wave nebulization for targeted inhalation drug delivery to central and peripheral airways;nasal-pampa: a novel in vitro tool for prediction of intranasal drug permeability;in vitro and in vivo evaluations of the tolerance of a new and innovative anti-tuberculosis drug combination by inhalation;transport of local anesthetic lidocaine across a pharyngeal air-liquid interface cell model;and the quantitative assessment of vape devices as novel pulmonary drug delivery systems using fluorine-18 radiolabeled drug molecules.

Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) in Facemasks: Potential Source of Human Exposure to PFAS with Implications for Disposal to Landfills

Facemasks are important tools for fighting against disease spread, including Covid-19 and its variants, and some may be treated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Nine facemasks over a range of prices were analyzed for total fluorine and PFAS. The PFAS compositions of the masks were then used to estimate exposure and the mass of PFAS discharged to landfill leachate. Fluorine from PFAS accounted only for a small fraction of total fluorine. Homologous series of linear perfluoroalkyl carboxylates and the 6:2 fluorotelomer alcohol indicated a fluorotelomer origin. Inhalation was estimated to be the dominant exposure route (40%-50%), followed by incidental ingestion (15%-40%) and dermal (11%-20%). Exposure and risk estimates were higher for children than adults, and high physical activity substantially increased inhalation exposure. These preliminary findings indicate that wearing masks treated with high levels of PFAS for extended periods of time can be a notable source of exposure and have the potential to pose a health risk. Despite modeled annual disposal of 29-91 billion masks, and an assuming 100% leaching of individual PFAS into landfill leachate, mask disposal would contribute only an additional 6% of annual PFAS mass loads and less than 11 kg of PFAS discharged to U.S. wastewater. © 2022 American Chemical Society.

Large-Scale Blow Spinning of Nanofiber Membranes for Highly Efficient Air Mechanical Filtration with Antibacterial Activity

The demand for air filtration products has increased significantly with the aggravation of air pollution and the pandemic of coronavirus disease (COVID-19). It is urgently needed to develop an air filtration membrane that exhibits lasting filtration performance and antibacterial activity. Herein, we report a large-scale blow spinning technique to produce polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanofiber membranes for highly efficient air mechanical filtration and its antibacterial modification by adding the silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). The PVDF nanofiber membrane with an area density of only 1.0 g/m2 exhibits the highest filtration efficiency of 98.63% for the particle with a size of 0.3 μm. After eliminating static electricity, there is almost no reduction in the filtration efficiency of particulate matter with a size larger than 1 μm and only 4.69% decrease in the particulate matter with a size of 0.5 μm. Hence, the PVDF nanofiber membrane with nanostructures for air filtration works mainly by the means of mechanical filtration. To inhibit the survival or growth of the intercepted bacteria on the membrane, the PVDF/AgNPs nanofiber membrane was fabricated by adding AgNPs to PVDF nanofibers, which exhibits the strongest antibacterial activity of more than 99% and an excellent filtration efficiency similar to that without adding AgNPs. The nanofiber membrane with antibacterial activity is expected to extend the service or storage time or be reused without loss of filtration performance. Additionally, large-scale production of nanofiber filtration membranes has been realized using a multi-needle blow spinning machine. © 2022 American Chemical Society.

A wearable exhaling-oxygen-sensing mask based on piezoelectric/gas-sensing coupling effect for real-time monitoring and uploading lung disease information

Comprehensive analysis of respiratory gases may provide noninvasive health monitoring of lung diseases, such as corona virus 2019 pneumonia. Here, a self-powered wearable mask has been fabricated for real-time monitoring and uploading exhaling oxygen information. Tetrapod ZnO (T-ZnO) nanostructures are hybridized with polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) that adhere to flexible fabric substrate on a mask. The piezoelectric effect of T-ZnO/PVDF is coupled with the gas sensing properties. The sensing unit can convert breath energy into piezoelectric signal without any external power supply, and the outputting piezoelectric voltage increases with increasing oxygen concentration, acting as the sensing signal. The sensing unit integrated with data processing module and wireless Bluetooth module can transmit the exhaling oxygen information to the mobile device, realizing real-time monitoring the oxygenation capacity of the lungs. This self-powered wearable approach can promote the lung diagnosis outside of clinical settings. © 2022 IOP Publishing Ltd.

New Halogen-Containing Drugs Approved by FDA in 2021: An Overview on Their Syntheses and Pharmaceutical Use.

This review describes the recent Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs (in the year 2021) containing at least one halogen atom (covalently bound). The structures proposed throughout this work are grouped according to their therapeutical use. Their synthesis is presented as well. The number of halogenated molecules that are reaching the market is regularly preserved, and 14 of the 50 molecules approved by the FDA in the last year contain halogens. This underlines the emergent role of halogens and, in particular, of fluorine and chlorine in the preparation of drugs for the treatment of several diseases such as viral infections, several types of cancer, cardiovascular disease, multiple sclerosis, migraine and inflammatory diseases such as vasculitis.

FDG PET/CT findings and post-treatment changes of COVID-19 pneumonia in a patient with lymphoma: A case report

A 29-year-old male with a history of Hodgkin's lymphoma presented for evaluation of response to chemotherapy with positron emission tomography/computed tomography using fluorine-18-fluoro-2-deoxy-d-glucose (18F-FDG PET/CT). Follow-up 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging demonstrated resolution of previously noted FDG avid axillary lymphadenopathy. However, multiple opacities with increased FDG uptake were noted in the lungs bilaterally, which were suspicious for pulmonary infection, including viral pneumonia. The patient tested positive for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) virus infection by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Additional cycles of chemotherapy were delayed until the patient became negative for COVID-19 virus infection on follow-up RT-PCR test 2 weeks later. The patient received two additional cycles of chemotherapy. Follow-up 18F-FDG PET/CT post chemotherapy demonstrated a decrease in the size of the previously seen mediastinal lymphadenopathy, reduction of FDG uptake by the previously seen mediastinal lymphadenopathy, and reduction of FDG uptake by the previously seen pulmonary opacities, at 2 months after COVID-19 diagnosis. The findings of this case report demonstrated the importance of recognition of pulmonary abnormalities caused by COVID-19 pneumonia on 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging for clinical management of patients with lymphoma. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Molecular & Clinical Oncology is the property of Spandidos Publications UK Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

The Pharmaceutical Industry in 2021. An Analysis of FDA Drug Approvals from the Perspective of Molecules.

Similar to last year, 2021 will be remembered for the COVID-19 pandemic. Although five vaccines have been approved by the two most important drug regulatory agencies, namely the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the pandemic has still not been brought under control. However, despite the context of a global pandemic, 2021 has been an excellent year with respect to drug approvals by the FDA. In 2021, 50 drugs have been authorized, making it the fourth-best year after 2018 (59 drugs) and 1996 and 2020 (53 each). Regarding biologics, 2021 has been the third-best year to date, with 14 approvals, and it has also witnessed the authorization of 36 small molecules. Of note, nine peptides, eight monoclonal antibodies, two antibody-drug conjugates, and two oligonucleotides have been approved this year. From them, five of the molecules are pegylated and three of them highly pegylated. The presence of nitrogen aromatic heterocycles and/or fluorine atoms are once again predominant among the so-called small molecules. This report analyzes the 50 new drugs approved in 2021 from a chemical perspective, as it did for those authorized in the previous five years. On the basis of chemical structure alone, the drugs that received approval in 2021 are classified as the following: biologics (antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, enzymes, and pegylated proteins); TIDES (peptide and oligonucleotides); combined drugs; natural products; nitrogen aromatic heterocycles; fluorine-containing molecules; and other small molecules.

Evaluation of a Smectite Adsorption-Based Electrostatic System to Decontaminate F− Rich Thermal Waters

Several studies have shown the presence of fluoride levels much higher than the 1.5 mg/L threshold concentration recommended by WHO in the spring waters and wells of the Ethiopian Rift Valley. Available defluoridation techniques can be costly, present complicated technical aspects, and show limited effectiveness. Therefore, it is necessary to devise innovative, sustainable, and effective solutions. This study proposes an alternative method of intervention to the known techniques for removing fluoride from water, particularly suitable for smaller rural communities. In particular, in this work, the possibility to use electromagnetic fields as a physical method for removing the excess fluoride was investigated. The study was carried out by developing a multiphysics model used for studying and envisaging the design of a device. In this framework, the combination of this approach with the use of highly reactive smectite clay was numerically studied. The results obtained, although preliminary, indicate that the proposed system could significantly impoverish the waters of the Rift Valley from fluoride, with the consequence of obtaining a resource suitable for human consumption, in particular for rural communities. However, further theoretical investigations and experimental phases will be necessary to achieve the desired results.

Polyaminoacid Based Core@shell Nanocarriers of 5-Fluorouracil: Synthesis, Properties and Theranostics Application.

Cancer is one of the most important health problems of our population, and one of the common anticancer treatments is chemotherapy. The disadvantages of chemotherapy are related to the drug's toxic effects, which act on cancer cells and the healthy part of the body. The solution of the problem is drug encapsulation and drug targeting. The present study aimed to develop a novel method of preparing multifunctional 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) nanocarriers and their in vitro characterization. 5-FU polyaminoacid-based core@shell nanocarriers were formed by encapsulation drug-loaded nanocores with polyaminoacids multilayer shell via layer-by-layer method. The size of prepared nanocarriers ranged between 80-200 nm. Biocompatibility of our nanocarriers as well as activity of the encapsulated drug were confirmed by MTT tests. Moreover, the ability to the real-time observation of developed nanocarriers and drug accumulation inside the target was confirmed by fluorine magnetic resonance imaging (19F-MRI).

Fluorine-18 Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography in Hodgkin's Lymphoma: Diagnostic Challenge during COVID Vaccination.

Benign metabolic uptake on fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (18F-FDG PET) is not uncommonly seen after immunization. We report a case of 30-year-old man with Hodgkin's lymphoma who underwent two cycles of chemotherapy. Interim 18F-FDG PET/computed tomography demonstrated complete metabolic response of prior hypermetabolic bilateral supraclavicular and mediastinal lymph nodes. Although multiple new normal-sized hypermetabolic left axillary and subpectoral lymph nodes are noted, relevant history revealed COVID vaccine 7 days prior scan with mild FDG uptake at the left deltoid muscle. These new findings at the left axilla are likely related to recent vaccination. 18F-FDG PET uptake in the lymph nodes is not so uncommon after immunization; relevant history is very important especially in the phase of massive immunization to avoid false interpretation.

The First Insight Into the Supramolecular System of D,L-α-Difluoromethylornithine: A New Antiviral Perspective.

Targeting the polyamine biosynthetic pathway by inhibiting ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) is a powerful approach in the fight against diverse viruses, including SARS-CoV-2. Difluoromethylornithine (DFMO, eflornithine) is the best-known inhibitor of ODC and a broad-spectrum, unique therapeutical agent. Nevertheless, its pharmacokinetic profile is not perfect, especially when large doses are required in antiviral treatment. This article presents a holistic study focusing on the molecular and supramolecular structure of DFMO and the design of its analogues toward the development of safer and more effective formulations. In this context, we provide the first deep insight into the supramolecular system of DFMO supplemented by a comprehensive, qualitative and quantitative survey of non-covalent interactions via Hirshfeld surface, molecular electrostatic potential, enrichment ratio and energy frameworks analysis visualizing 3-D topology of interactions in order to understand the differences in the cooperativity of interactions involved in the formation of either basic or large synthons (Long-range Synthon Aufbau Modules, LSAM) at the subsequent levels of well-organized supramolecular self-assembly, in comparison with the ornithine structure. In the light of the drug discovery, supramolecular studies of amino acids, essential constituents of proteins, are of prime importance. In brief, the same amino-carboxy synthons are observed in the bio-system containing DFMO. DFT calculations revealed that the biological environment changes the molecular structure of DFMO only slightly. The ADMET profile of structural modifications of DFMO and optimization of its analogue as a new promising drug via molecular docking are discussed in detail.

The Pharmaceutical Industry in 2020. An Analysis of FDA Drug Approvals from the Perspective of Molecules.

Although the pharmaceutical industry will remember 2020 as the year of COVID-19, it is important to highlight that this year has been the second-best-together with 1996-in terms of the number of drugs accepted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Each of these two years witnessed the authorization of 53 drugs-a number surpassed only in 2018 with 59 pharmaceutical agents. The 53 approvals in 2020 are divided between 40 new chemical entities and 13 biologic drugs (biologics). Of note, ten monoclonal antibodies, two antibody-drug conjugates, three peptides, and two oligonucleotides have been approved in 2020. Close inspection of the so-called small molecules reveals the significant presence of fluorine atoms and/or nitrogen aromatic heterocycles. This report analyzes the 53 new drugs of the 2020 harvest from a strictly chemical perspective, as it did for those authorized in the previous four years. On the basis of chemical structure alone, the drugs that received approval in 2020 are classified as the following: biologics (antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates, and proteins); TIDES (peptide and oligonucleotides); natural products; fluorine-containing molecules; nitrogen aromatic heterocycles; and other small molecules.