Structure-based drug design

It is extremely difficult to design a broad-spectrum inhibitor for metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) due to the diversity in the active site. Now, indole-2-carboxylates have been developed as broad-spectrum inhibitors for MBLs. These inhibitors take advantage of key elements of both MBL substrates and products and work by locking a hydroxide.

Smith et al. report the design of ripretinib, an investigational tyrosine kinase inhibitor that forces the activation loop of KIT and PDGFRα into an inactive conformation and targets a broad spectrum of KIT and PDGFRα mutants in GIST.

Endocytosis mediates the internalization of proteins and lipids at the plasma membrane and plays essential roles in plant growth and development. A new small molecule enables manipulation of plant endocytosis in an acute and transient manner.

The structure of an antibiotic that is effective against Gram-positive bacteria, but not against Gram-negative bacteria, has now been modified to improve its effectiveness against Gram-negative bacteria. The approach could help broaden the spectrum of activity of other antibiotics.