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Reductionism and proxy failure: From neuroscience to target-based drug discovery

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 May 2024

Arash Sadri Open the ORCID record for Arash Sadri [Opens in a new window]  and
Sepideh Paknezhad
Arash Sadri*
Affiliation:
Lyceum Scientific Charity, Tehran, Iran https://lyceum.charity Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Research Program (INRP), Students' Scientific Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Sepideh Paknezhad
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Sari Branch, Islamic Azad University, Sari, Iran sepidehpaknezhad@outlook.com
*
Corresponding author: Arash Sadri; Email: arashsadri@lyceum.charity
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Abstract

Reductionist methodologies reduce phenomena to some of their lower-level components. Researchers gradually shift their focus away from observing the actual object of study toward investigating and optimizing such lower-level proxies. Following reductionism, these proxies progressively diverge further from the original object of study. We vividly illustrate this in the evolution of target-based drug discovery from rational and phenotypic drug discovery.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 47 , 2024 , e83
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press

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