Maybridge, part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, has introduced a novel tool to accelerate hit-to-lead programmes in the drug discovery process.
The Maybridge Quick2Lead Compound Kits are designed to save time and money by enabling rapid compound library synthesis around bioactive "hits" emerging from screening assays.
The kits are made up of pre-weighed, diverse building block selections, facilitating rapid capture of structure-activity (SAR) data from the closely related structural analogues within the library.
Available as five functionality-based kits, with each one containing 48 compounds, they "enable the exploration of a wide area of chemical space to maximise credible SAR data acquisition for the successful conversion of an initial hit into a genuine, optimisable lead," says the manufacturer.
Since the compounds are all pre-weighed, the kits are ready to use by simply adding solvent and transferring straight to a synthesiser.
The five functional groups available include: carboxylic acids, sulfonyl chlorides, amines, anilines and boronic acids. Each of these functional groups is applicable to a wide range of trusted parallel synthesis methodologies.
Each of the pre-selected compounds is supplied as 0.1mMol in a 5mL vial. This saves time and money at several levels minimising stock, avoiding disposal and reducing storage footprint. The pre-selection process also avoids the "dead time" that can be experienced waiting for multiple building blocks from internal and external sources. "Our aim with the Maybridge product range is to help shorten the discovery process, from screening to scale-up," said Dr Mick Durrant, director of business development for Maybridge product.
"We recognise that identifying, sourcing and weighing building blocks to feed the library production process around an initial hit can be time consuming and expensive. Our new Quick2Lead Kits offer a novel approach to drive these costs down by providing pre-weighed, diverse building block selections which are simply ready-to-go."