Drug design/discovery natural sources

Example of the use of NMR to design inhibitors. (Source Pellecchia M, Sem DS, Wuthrich K. NMR in drug discovery. Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 1 211-219 (2002). Used with permission.)... 

The structural and biological diversity of the cyclic lipopeptide antibiotics is extremely attractive to chemical, pharmacological and medical sciences. Future rational drug design, chemical modification and discovery of novel cyclic lipopeptides from natural sources will give rise to useful biological tools for research and development in the medicinal sciences. 

We presented a review of the natural product chemistry found in species of Pseudopterogorgia. These metabolites function as predator deterents and some of them proved to be (potential) therapeutic agents. The discovery of pseudopterosins and their potent anti-inflammatory activity should be especially highlighted as one of the most prominent (marine chemistry) scientific inventions of the last decade. We feel that the combination of the discoveries reviewed herein combined with drug design based on structure activity studies of these compounds will lead to therapeutic agents which although derived from marine life chemistry, will not rely on it as a source. 

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