Overview

A September 9, 2009, meeting of the Academy's Chemical Biology Discussion Group showcased a variety of ways to identify small molecules that hold potential as new drugs; namely, rational molecular design, natural products, and chemical libraries. John Koh explained how rational drug design can be used to create ligands that restore function to mutated nuclear hormone receptors. Akira Kawamura described efforts to isolate the active compounds from two traditional Asian herbal medicines. Using gene chip expression analysis and fractionation techniques, his group has identified important molecules found in Toki-shakuyaku-san (TSS) and Juzen-taiho-to (JTT). Tom Kodadek presented a general approach for identifying immunobiomarkers for any disease to which the immune system reacts in a specific fashion. Using synthetic mimics of protein antigens called peptoids in an EAE mouse model of multiple sclerosis, he has had preliminary success in preventing stimulation of autoimmune T cell proliferation.

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