A critical appraisal of structure-based drug design.

ABSTRACT

Even though conceptually started in the early 1980s, the use of protein structure information in drug discovery has never reached the current level of significance, nor has it experienced the revolutionary development that it is currently undergoing. Initially used for lead optimization, structure-based drug design (SBDD) now covers and supports virtually all steps in the drug- discovery pipeline. This commentary is a critical appraisal of the current state of the art, examining both successes and failures. Future directions in SBDD are also discussed.