Understanding the recognition process between bioactive natural products and their specific cellular receptors is of key importance in the drug discovery process. In this outline, some potential targets of Magnolol, a natural bioactive compound, have been identified by proteomic approaches. Among them, Importin-β1 has been considered as the most relevant one. A direct binding between Magnolol and this nuclear chaperone has been confirmed by DARTS and molecular docking, while its influence on Importin-β1 translocation has been evaluated by in vitro assays.
Keywords: bioactive neolignans; chemical proteomics; drug affinity responsive target stability; molecular docking; nuclear import.