Only 15 novel drugs had been approved through late November this year, down from 24 for all of 2001 and from 53 in 1996.

BNC210 is a novel anxiolytic drug with an unknown mechanism of action.

Venoms and toxins have been used as lead compounds in the development of novel drugs.

Another line of research would be to develop novel drugs to impede insulin's effect on breast cells.

"It illustrates how the continued study of a once novel drug throughout its product lifecycle can yield new and important uses."

Its R&D has broadened to produce one novel drug a year.

These novel drugs work by blocking the action of leukotrienes.

But he added that more novel drugs were also in the works.

Disease progression is then followed in time and novel drugs can be tested for their ability to inhibit it.

Therefore, they have significant potential within the pharmaceutical industry as a means of generating novel drugs.