Biophysical methods for identifying fragment-based inhibitors of protein-protein interactions

Methods Mol Biol. 2015:1278:587-613. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4939-2425-7_39.

Abstract

Fragment-based lead discovery complements high-throughput screening and computer-aided drug design for the discovery of small-molecule inhibitors of protein-protein interactions. Fragments are molecules with molecular masses ca 280 Da or smaller, and are generally screened using structural or biophysical approaches. Several methods of fragment-based screening are feasible for any soluble protein that can be expressed and purified; specific techniques also have size limitations and/or require multiple milligrams of protein. This chapter describes some of the most common fragment-discovery methods, including surface plasmon resonance, nuclear magnetic resonance, differential scanning fluorimetry, and X-ray crystallography.

MeSH terms

  • Biophysics / methods*
  • Computer-Aided Design
  • Crystallography, X-Ray
  • Drug Discovery*
  • Humans
  • Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
  • Models, Molecular
  • Protein Interaction Maps / drug effects*
  • Small Molecule Libraries / chemistry*
  • Small Molecule Libraries / pharmacology
  • Surface Plasmon Resonance

Substances

  • Small Molecule Libraries