The hit-to-lead process screens the molecule from all the hit and hit series to find the molecules that interact much better with the therapeutic target and have a much stronger therapeutic effect. Experimental methods such as high-throughput screening are also used in the hit-to-lead phase. Compared to hit validation, the hit-to-lead phase involves more screening experiments such as preliminary toxicity testing experiments, early drug metabolism studies, and testing in animal models. This step determines the workload of lead optimization, which is the largest workload in drug development.
Fig. 1 Hit-to-lead development of H. pylori small molecule drugs - Ace Therapeutics.
Ace Therapeutics assists H. pylori drug development by providing hit-to-lead services for H. pylori small molecule drugs. We combine biological, physical, chemical, and computer science to optimize the selection method, and we identify 2 or 3 hit or hit series that have the best potential to develop into drug-like leads in the most economical way. Below are our approaches to H. pylori's hit-to-lead process.
Our approaches
In-silico profiling
In-silico profiling helps with the rapid implementation of the hit-to-lead process as it can help the centralized synthesis of hits and the creation of new hit series. Members of our company's computer science department have extensive experience working in molecular modeling, data mining, cheminformatics, and bioinformatics. Using in-silico technology, they can easily utilize hit profiling online, including scaffold core-hopping and pharmacological modeling. What's more, we have in-depth studies of all types of H. pylori molecules and can provide a more accurate analysis of the binding when the drug target is on H. pylori.
Orthogonal testing
In order to screen for leads with genuine developmental potential, we use a variety of biophysical, biochemical, and cell biology experiments to screen the hits and hit series. And orthogonal testing is used to make sure that the screened leads are target-specific and not false positives. In addition, in order to efficiently exclude hits and hit series without developmental potential with minimal experiments, we provide a custom design orthogonal testing service.
Selective evaluation / Patent space evaluation
In addition to excluding false positive hits and hit series, it is also necessary to exclude hits and hit series that have a lower binding capacity to the therapeutic target than homologs or analogs of the therapeutic target. Hits and hit series that are less selective for the therapeutic target are likely to lead to clinical risk and therefore need to be removed. In addition, this evaluation can provide recommendations for the appropriate range of operations for lead optimization.
Toxicity testing and ADME testing
Toxicity testing and ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion) analysis are the main experiments for hit profiling. In toxicity testing, we provide in vivo toxicity experiments in animals (H. pylori-infected animals and healthy animals) to determine the toxicity of the hits and hit series. For the compounds in the hits and hit series, we perform ADME analysis using multiple methods, including in vitro ADME and in vivo ADME analysis.
Contact us
A rigorous hit-to-lead process can provide operational advice on multiple aspects of lead optimization and greatly save the time required for lead optimization. Ace Therapeutics offers a rigorous hit-to-lead screening service for H. pylori. through in-silico profiling, orthogonal testing, selective evaluation, toxicity testing, and ADME testing, we can quickly implement the hit-to-lead process and provide high-value recommendations for lead optimization. Contact us for a faster and more valuable hit-to-lead service of H. pylori drug.
※ All of our services and products are intended for preclinical research use only and cannot be used to diagnose, treat or manage patients.
