Quo vadis G protein-coupled receptor ligands? A tool for analysis of the emergence of new groups of compounds over time

Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2017 Feb 1;27(3):626-631. doi: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2016.12.001. Epub 2016 Dec 2.

Abstract

Exponential growth in the number of compounds with experimentally verified activity towards particular target has led to the emergence of various databases gathering data on biological activity. In this study, the ligands of family A of the G Protein-Coupled Receptors that are collected in the ChEMBL database were examined, and special attention was given to serotonin receptors. Sets of compounds were examined in terms of their appearance over time, they were mapped to the chemical space of drugs deposited in DrugBank, and the emergence of structurally new clusters of compounds was indicated. In addition, a tool for detailed analysis of the obtained visualizations was prepared and made available online at http://chem.gmum.net/vischem, which enables the investigation of chemical structures while referring to particular data points depicted in the figures and changes in compounds datasets over time.

Keywords: ChEMBL database; Clustering; DrugBank; GPCR ligands; History; Serotonin receptors.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Databases, Chemical
  • Internet
  • Ligands*
  • Protein Binding
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / chemistry
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled / metabolism*
  • Receptors, Serotonin / chemistry
  • Receptors, Serotonin / metabolism
  • User-Computer Interface

Substances

  • Ligands
  • Receptors, G-Protein-Coupled
  • Receptors, Serotonin