Introduction to the antibiotic and antiviral compounds themed collection

The occurrence of infectious diseases has had a profound impact not only on human health but also on the course of history. Even with the continued development of anti-infective agents dating back to the discovery of penicillin, the emergence of infectious diseases still plagues modern society and disproportionately impacts populations in poorer countries. Each year infectious diseases are responsible for over 14 million deaths globally. In the 21st century the World Health Organization (WHO) has already declared fourteen infectious disease-related public health emergencies. These outbreaks include SARS, Influenza H1N1, Ebola, MRSA, MERS, Zika, SARS-CoV-2 and Monkeypox. However, these public health emergency declarations do not even capture the impact produced by chronic infectious diseases such as HIV, HCV, HBV, HSV, and HPV nor do they recognize the critical situation presented by the emergence of resistant pathogens like MRSA. Each of these outbreaks and chronic conditions has had profound impact on public health and have resulted in increased economic burden both regionally and globally. Many factors continue to contribute to the growing concern around emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. Growing population density and urbanization, the dramatic increase in global travel and migration and climate change all raise concerns about the potential for new infectious disease outbreaks.

To counter these growing concerns there needs to be vigilance in surveillance and the ability to respond quickly with effective countermeasures such as vaccines and therapeutics. Vaccines and therapeutics work hand-in-hand by preventing new infections and treating those who become infected. The power of vaccines has been evident in the elimination of polio and smallpox and in the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Therapeutics have demonstrated their utility in curing both acute infections and even chronic viral infections like HCV. However, infectious organisms continue to evolve and adapt to their environment leading to the emergence of resistant strains and therefore, the specter of drug resistance remains a real concern. The WHO has recognized antimicrobial resistance as one of the top 10 global public health threats. Consequently, it is important that investments be made to identify and track the emergence of new pathogens and the reemergence of those already known. In addition, increased support for research needs to be forthcoming in order to identify novel anti-infectives that can meet the ever-present threat.

Drug discovery and development is evolving to meet the growing need for combating emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases. New and improved tools such as genomics, computational chemistry, high throughput screening, and modern methods of chemical synthesis are now available to drug hunters searching for those next breakthrough anti-infective agents. In this cross-journal collection for RSC Medicinal Chemistry and Organic & Biomolecular Chemistry, we see progress on many fronts in attempts to meet the growing need for therapies. We read about novel approaches to develop therapies for treating viral infections that include targeting the SARS-CoV-2 viral main protease, targeting the viral capsid protein to inhibit HBV and HIV and the development of novel HBV nucleotide inhibitors. Novel approaches to treat both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria as well as approaches to address bacterial resistance are also described.

We would like to thank all the authors for making this themed collection possible during this difficult time due to the pandemic. We hope the collection can help press the need in the community for continued development of anti-infective agents in preparation for new waves of infectious disease outbreaks.

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