DeCure's autonomous Rare AI scientist is researching a drug-repurposing hypothesis for Toxic Nodular Goiter — screening already-approved drugs against its 27-gene Open Targets disease module to publish open-access research. Research is fast; the path to publication is funded in milestone stages.
Disease moduleToxic Nodular Goiter maps to a 27-gene Open Targets module — the target space DeCure's AI scientist screens approved drugs against.
DeCure.ai methodSignature reversal (LINCS) plus network proximity (STRING) rank already-approved drugs likely to perturb this module — the same engine that produces DeCure.ai's repurposing hypotheses.
Repurposing thesisScreening approved medicines against this disease module, then publishing the evidence for the strongest candidate. Known pharmacology and human exposure data make the first question sharper — they do not establish safety or efficacy in a new indication.
Research record
01
ResearchComing soon
Candidate research + dossier — target rationale, drug-repurposing thesis and evidence pack.proof: Published dossier + on-chain hash
02
ValidationComing soon
In-vitro biological validation at a contract research org (CRO).proof: CRO contract + in-vitro report
03
Peer review & paperComing soon
Peer-reviewed paper published open-access (preprint + journal).proof: DOI + open-access link + on-chain hash
Current lead
No approved-drug candidate for toxic nodular goiter is corroborated in the literature DeepSearch retrieved. Some conditions are managed with non-pharmacological care — a device, surgery or physical therapy — rather than a medicine; that may be the case here, or the literature we found may simply be too sparse yet to support a drug-repurposing angle.
Molecular view
MDM4 regulator of p53 (MDM4) — MDM4 is one of the genes genetically linked to this disease in Open Targets — shown as context, not as a drug target we're pursuing: no approved-drug candidate for this disease is yet corroborated in the literature we found.
Loading structure…
helix sheet 3~{s}drag to rotate · scroll to zoom
RCSB Protein Data Bank · entry 6Q9Y · 1.2 Å · ligand 7-methoxy-~{N}-[(3~{S})-1-(4-methylphenyl)pyrrolidin-3-yl]-1~{H}-indole-3-carboxamide (HRQ). Experimental structure, not a prediction.
What the evidence adds up to
Radioiodine therapy was studied prospectively in 130 patients with multinodular toxic goiter followed for a median of 72 months. One or two treatments cured 119 patients (92%), and 52% became euthyroid within three months. Median thyroid volume fell from 44 mL to 25 mL, a 43% reduction, 24 months after the last dose. Hypothyroidism developed in 14% within five years, but was more common in patients who received antithyroid drug pretreatment (20%) than in those who did not (6%). The authors concluded that iodine-131 should be the treatment of choice.
Propylthiouracil was given to 95 patients with toxic goiter over 21 months, including 67 with toxic nodular goiter. The average age of the nodular group was 51 years, with a mean disease duration of 2.7 years. The average initial basal metabolic rate in untreated patients with toxic nodular goiter was plus 24%. No long-term cure rates or thyroid volume changes were reported for this drug.
A genetic study of 216 patients compared vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms in those with differentiated thyroid cancers, nodular goiter, and healthy controls. No significant differences in BsmI, ApaI, or TaqI genotype distributions were found between groups. For the FokI polymorphism, the FF genotype was statistically significantly higher in patients with nodular goiter (p=0.033), but the authors concluded that VDR gene SNPs are not associated with malignancy.
A 2025 study of 147 patients with nodular goiter and various thyroid functional states tested two herbal-mineral compositions. One contained L-tyrosine, brown algae extract, zinc, copper, and folate; the other contained white cinquefoil extract, black chokeberry extract, hawthorn extract, and sodium selenite. The authors reported that in euthyroid patients with diffuse and mixed goiter, combined use of both preparations led to a significant decrease in thyroid volume and a tendency toward reduced nodule size, with normal thyroid status maintained and antibody levels unchanged. No survival data, response rates, or sample sizes for individual subgroups were given, and the study did not compare these supplements against radioiodine or antithyroid drugs. What remains missing is a randomised controlled trial comparing these herbal formulations to standard therapy, with clearly defined endpoints, adequate sample sizes, and stratification by thyroid functional status.
Evidence
Retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works and resolved on OpenAlex — ranked by citations, including the results that did not work.
Archives of Internal Medicine · 1999 · 121 citations · open access
Radioiodine Therapy for Multinodular Toxic Goiter
AbstractBACKGROUND: Radiolabeled iodine 131 therapy is used for treatment of multinodular toxic goiter, but long-term follow-up studies are lacking. METHODS: A prospective study of 130 consecutive patients (115 women) treated with 131I for multinodular toxic goiter and followed by evaluation of thyroid volume (determined using ultrasound) and thyroid function variables. RESULTS: The patients were observed for a median of 72 months (range, 12-180 months). Sixty-six patients received antithyroid drug pretreatment; 64 did not. Iodine 131 treatment (3.7 MBq/g thyroid tissue corrected to a 100% 24-hour 131I uptake) was given as a single dose in 81 patients, 2 doses in 38, and 3 to 5 doses in 11. One or 2 treatments cured 119 patients (92%), and 68 (52%) became euthyroid within 3 months after 131I treatment. The median 131I dose was 370 MBq (range, 93-1850 MBq). Forty-nine patients needing more than 131I dose had a reduction in median thyroid volume from 56 mL (range, 21-430 mL) to 44 mL (range, 15-108 mL), representing a 24% reduction related to the insufficient 131I dose. In all patients, the initial median thyroid volume of 44 mL (range, 16-430 mL) decreased to 25 mL (range, 8-120 mL) (P<.005), representing a median reduction of 43%, 24 months after the last 131I dose. Hypothyroidism evaluated using life-table analysis developed in 6% of patients who did not receive antithyroid pretreatment and 20% who did (P<.005) after a median of 42 months (range, 3-60 months), the total hypothyroidism frequency being 14% within 5 years of treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Ninety-two percent of patients with multinodular toxic goiter were cured with 1 or 2 treatments. The thyroid volume was reduced by 43%, with few side effects. Iodine 131 should be the choice of treatment in patients with multinodular toxic goiter.
The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism · 1948 · 11 citations
PROPYLTHIOURACIL IN THE TREATMENT OF TOXIC GOITER
AbstractTHIS report, an extension of one previously made (1), deals with the use of propylthiouracil in 95 patients with toxic goiter during a period of twenty-one months. The group includes 67 patients with toxic nodular goiter (21 males and 46 females), and 28 with toxic diffuse goiter (8 males and 20 females). The average age of the former was 51 years with a duration of the disturbance of 2.7 years; in the latter it was 37 years and the duration 3.7 years. Thirty-four patients, 24 with toxic nodular and 10 with toxic diffuse goiter, had been previously treated with thiouracil, and 9 had had iodine before treatment. The average initial basal metabolic rate of the untreated patients was plus 24 per cent for those with toxic nodular goiter; and plus 30 per cent for those with toxic diffuse goiter. Both types previously treated with thiouracil showed an average initial basal metabolic rate of plus 6 per cent (Table 1).
Evaluation of vitamin D receptor gene polymorphisms in patients with differentiated thyroid carcinomas and nodular goiter
AbstractBACKGROUND: The role of vitamin D has previously been determined in autoimmune and malignant thyroid diseases. We aimed to identify the haplotype distribution of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the vitamin D receptor (VDR) gene, which has been suggested to play a role in the pathogenesis of differentiated thyroid cancers and benign thyroid diseases. METHODS: Two hundred and sixteen patients, 113 with benign and 103 with differentiated thyroid cancers, together with the same number of healthy controls, were included in the study. FokI, BsmI, ApaI, and TaqI SNPs in VDR were analyzed in all participants using the PCR-RFLP method. RESULTS: When the patients with differentiated thyroid cancers or the patients with nodular goiter and control cases were compared for BsmI, ApaI or TaqI polymorphisms, three genotype distributions (BB, Bb, bb; AA, Aa, aa; TT, Tt, tt) were found to not differ significantly. When the patients with differentiated thyroid cancers and control cases were compared for the FokI polymorphism in the VDR gene, the three genotype distributions (FF, Ff, ff) did not differ. However, in patients with nodular goiter, the FF genotype in the FokI polymorphism of the VDR gene was found to be statistically significantly higher (P=0.033). CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study in the literature evaluating the role of VDR gene SNPs in nodular goiter. We can suggest that SNP distribution in the VDR gene is not associated with malignancy but may cause some alterations in thyrocyte morphology and functions.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENDOCRINOLOGY (Ukraine) · 2025 · 1 citations · open access
Herbal and mineral composition for the management of thyroid dysfunction
AbstractBackground. To date, herbal medicine is one of the most promising methods for comprehensive treatment of diffuse and mixed goiter. Under such conditions, it is relevant to use pharmacological preparations based on plant materials that would have a wide range of effects on thyroid function. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness, safety and tolerability of dietary supplements containing L-tyrosine, brown algae extract (Phaeophyceae), zinc, copper, and folate, as well as dry extract of roots and rhizomes of white cinquefoil (Potentilla alba L.), dry extract of black chokeberry fruits (Aronia melanocarpa), dry extract of flowers and fruits of redhaw hawthorn (Crataegus sanguinea), sodium selenite and possibilities of their combination. Materials and methods. The study included 147 patients with nodular goiter and different thyroid functional state: 23 with diffuse goiter, euthyroidism; 24 with diffuse goiter, subclinical hypothyroidism; 22 with diffuse goiter, subclinical thyrotoxicosis; 27 with nodular goiter, euthyroidism; 25 with nodular goiter, subclinical hypothyroidism, 26 with nodular goiter, subclinical thyrotoxicosis. Results. The analysis of the use of herbal medicines showed that dietary supplements containing L-tyrosine, brown algae extract (Phaeophyceae), zinc, copper, and folate can be recommended alone or as part of a comprehensive treatment for 3 months in patients with endemic and multinodular goiter on the background of hypothyroidism and euthyroidism. In nodular goiter with hyperthyroidism and euthyroidism, it will be more effective to use herbal remedies with the inclusion of dry extract of roots and rhizomes of white cinquefoil (Potentilla alba L.), dry extract of black chokeberry fruits (Aronia melanocarpa), dry extract of flowers and fruits of redhaw hawthorn (Crataegus sanguinea), sodium selenite alone or as comprehensive treatment for 6 months. Patients with endemic and mixed goiter without thyroid dysfunction are recommended combined therapy with both herbal remedies for 3 months. Conclusions. The best effect was achieved with the combined use of both phytopreparations: in euthyroid patients with diffuse and mixed goiter, thyroid status remained normal, antibody levels were unchanged; they presented a significant decrease in volume and a tendency to decrease in the size of thyroid nodules.
Disease module: DeepOracle (Open Targets). Structures: RDKit from PubChem SMILES. Literature: retrieved by DeepSearch across 234,678,978 indexed works (targeted per-candidate search), resolved on OpenAlex.
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