Drug Design
Drug Design - Related Videos
01:28
Structure-Activity Relationships and Drug Design
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2024
Drug design is a dynamic field that involves discovering and developing new medications based on specific biological targets. This process heavily relies on structure-activity relationships (SAR) and quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR) to guide the design and optimization of efficient drugs. SAR studies the intricate relationship between a drug's chemical structure and biological activity. It focuses on understanding how modifications to a drug's structure can influence its...
10:50
Design and Use of a Low Cost, Automated Morbidostat for Adaptive Evolution of Bacteria Under Antibiotic Drug Selection
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Cited by 14 •
2016
We describe a low cost, configurable morbidostat that enables the characterization of antibiotic drug resistance by dynamically adjusting the drug concentration. The device can be integrated with a multiplexed microfluidic platform. The approach can be scaled up for laboratory antibiotic drug resistance studies.
01:22
Biopharmaceutical Factors Influencing Drug Product Design: Overview
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2025
Rational drug product design integrates knowledge of the drug’s physicochemical properties, formulation components, manufacturing techniques, and intended route of administration. Each factor influences the drug’s performance, including how it is released, absorbed, and eliminated in the body.The physicochemical properties of a drug—such as solubility, stability, and particle size—affect its compatibility with excipients and the choice of dosage form. Excipients, though pharmacologically...
02:01
Group Design
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2020
The most basic experimental design involves two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The two groups are designed to be the same except for one difference— experimental manipulation. The experimental group gets the experimental manipulation—that is, the treatment or variable being tested—and the control group does not. Since experimental manipulation is the only difference between the experimental and control groups, we can be sure that any differences between the two are due to...
06:42
From Theory to Design: The Role of Creativity in Designing Experiments
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2023
Source: Laboratories of Gary Lewandowski, Dave Strohmetz, and Natalie Ciarocco—Monmouth University Research studies come into being when a researcher speculates about human thought, emotions, or behavior, and has a theory that offers a potential explanation. Often the researcher’s theory is firmly situated in everyday common experiences that may not naturally lend themselves to direct empirical study. For example, researchers speculated that perception of a person on Facebook is influenced by...
FAQs
Structure–activity relationships connect deliberate changes in a compound’s functional groups or three-dimensional structure with measured biological effects. Chemists synthesize analogs, then compare their binding, potency, selectivity, or pharmacokinetic properties in biochemical and cellular assays. These comparisons reveal which structural features improve or weaken performance, allowing optimization to proceed from experimental evidence rather than structural assumptions alone.
Molecular modeling can help evaluate how a candidate may interact with a molecular target, while biochemical or cellular assays test whether the predicted interaction produces the desired response. Neither source of information is sufficient by itself: modeling supports hypotheses about structure and binding, whereas experiments provide measured evidence. Their combination helps prioritize compounds and refine subsequent analogs.
A promising compound must be evaluated across several properties rather than judged only by potency. Drug design considers target binding, biological activity, selectivity, and pharmacokinetic behavior, which describes how the compound performs in the body. Improving one feature may not resolve weaknesses in another, so iterative chemistry and testing are needed to identify compounds with a more useful overall profile.
Chemists vary selected functional groups and three-dimensional features across a series of related analogs. When assays show that a structural change alters binding, potency, selectivity, or cellular response, that result provides evidence about the contribution of the modified region. Repeating this controlled comparison builds a structure–activity relationship that supports more focused synthesis and optimization.
The workflow proceeds through compound selection or lead discovery, chemical synthesis of analogs, and biochemical or cellular testing. Results from each round guide the next structural modification, so the process is iterative rather than strictly linear. Candidates are compared for target engagement, potency, selectivity, pharmacokinetic properties, and possible toxicity concerns before further development.
Toxicity and resistance can be treated as optimization problems during iterative compound development. Chemists modify candidate structures and use experimental results to determine whether changes improve selectivity, biological performance, or other relevant properties while reducing identified weaknesses. This approach does not rely on potency alone and supports the search for safer, more effective medicines with improved therapeutic potential.