Quantitative Systems Pharmacology: A Framework for Context

Abstract

Quantitative Systems Pharmacology (QSP) is receiving increased attention. As the momentum builds and the expectations grow it is important to (re)assess and formalize the basic concepts and approaches. In this short review, I argue that QSP, in addition to enabling the rational integration of data and development of complex models, maybe more importantly, provides the foundations for developing an integrated framework for the assessment of drugs and their impact on disease within a broader context expanding the envelope to account in great detail for physiology, environment and prior history. I articulate some of the critical enablers, major obstacles and exciting opportunities manifesting themselves along the way. Charting such overarching themes will enable practitioners to identify major and defining factors as the field progressively moves towards personalized and precision health care delivery.

On the analysis of complex biological supply chains: From process systems engineering to quantitative systems pharmacology

“…These four concepts constituting the pillars of PSE have direct analgues in the context of QSP, as futher elaborared in (I. P. Androulakis, 2014, 2015; I.P. Androulakis, 2016).…”

“…By now, we realized that the pressing health challenges of the 21 st century will be non-communicable conditions with one common, underlying, characteristic: persistent, low-grade, systemic inflammation, (Bauer et al, 2014; Egger, 2012; Egger & Dixon, 2014; Libby, 2007; Tabas & Glass, 2013), leading to realizing the importance of “context” (I.P. Androulakis, 2016).…”

“…P. Androulakis, 2015; I.P. Androulakis, 2016; Iyengar et al, 2012; Jusko, 2013; Sorger et al, 2011; van der Graaf & Benson, 2011).…”

“…If one were to draw a simplified analogy between QSP and Process Systems Engineering (PSE), one can argue that much like PSE is concerned with understanding the ability and implications of a complex supply chain to respond to a disturbance, QSP considers a living host and its surrounding environment as the equivalent “supply chain” and the drug as the corresponding disturbance, asking in principle the same type of questions (I. P. Androulakis, 2014, 2015; I.P. Androulakis, 2016).…”

Computational methods and applications for quantitative systems pharmacology

“…The etiology and pathogenesis of complex diseases such as cancer, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's disease concern lots of genes, gene products, small molecules and pathways, and there are still challenges in disease treatment [6][7][8][9][10]. Quantitative systems pharmacology (QSP), as a branch of SP, is an emerging approach to understand the interaction mechanism between drugs and the body and to predict the pharmacological effects of drugs [11][12][13]. QSP integrates diverse data, including preclinical and clinical information to analyze dynamic interactions between a drug or drug combination and multi-scale biological systems, that aims to understand the behavior of the systems as a whole [14,15].…”