Table 2.
Comparison of compound-based drugs and biologic agents78
| Compound-based drugs | Biologic agents | |
|---|---|---|
| Composition | “Small molecule” compound | Peptide, protein, RNA, DNA |
| Route of administration | Oral, parenteral, topical | Typically parenteral |
| Discovery and Development | Usually by large-scale screening of compound libraries to identify parent drugs; chemical manipulation to alter characteristics | Choice of target defined by mechanism of disease. Development often by recombinant techniques |
| Cost | Expensive to develop, less expensive to produce | Relatively less expensive to develop, more expensive to produce |
| Time to clinical trial | Relatively long | Relatively brief |
| Examples | Classic receptor blockers, enzyme inhibitors, corticosteroids, immune modulators | Recombinant cytokines, cytokine receptor antagonists, chimeric and humanized antibodies, antisense oligonucleotides, somatic transgene vaccination |