Non-covalent inhibitors

DEL technology enables the simultaneous screening of millions or billions of compounds in a single tube by covalently linking each small molecule with a unique DNA sequence. Traditional DEL screening primarily focuses on identifying non-covalent binding molecules, where interactions with the target are reversible. In contrast, DNA‑encoded covalent library is an ultra‑high‑throughput screening library developed on the basis of conventional DNA‑encoded library technology. It incorporates controllable electrophilic covalent warheads capable of forming irreversible covalent bonds with amino acid residues at the active sites of target proteins, including Cys, Lys, Ser, Tyr, and others. This covalent binding enhances binding affinity, prolongs residence time at the target site, and has the potential to overcome challenges associated with traditional non-covalent inhibitors, such as drug resistance or off-target effects.

Each compound in the library contains both a binding domain and an electrophilic warhead. It first recognizes and binds to the target through non covalent interactions, and then forms a stable covalent bond with key amino acid residues to achieve irreversible inhibition. This library is specifically designed for the discovery of potent, long lasting, and highly selective covalent inhibitors, particularly for undruggable targets such as kinases, GPCRs, proteases, and mutant oncoproteins. Each molecule is uniquely labeled with a DNA barcode for molecular identification and sequencing decoding.

This library is an advanced and highly diverse collection, consists of 35 independent sub-libraries with a total scaleof 14 million compounds, It incorporates over 14 experimentally validated covalent warheads capable of targeting cysteine, lysine, arginine, aspartic acid and glutamic acid. This library is constructed with diverse drug like core scaffolds and integrated controllable covalent warheads, it features structural diversity, reaction spec

Small molecule covalent inhibitors, or irreversible inhibitors, are a type of inhibitors that exert their biological functions by irreversibly binding to target through covalent bonds. Compared with non-covalent inhibitors, covalent inhibitors have obvious advantages in bioactivity, such that covalent warheads can target rare residues of a particular target protein, thus leading to the development of highly selective inhibitors and achieving a more complete and continued target occupancy in living systems. In recent years, the distinct strengths of covalent inhibitors in overcoming drug resistance had been recognized. However, toxicity can be a real challenge related to this class of therapeutics due to their potential for off-target reactivity and has led to these drugs being disfavored as a drug class. The drug design and optimization of covalent inhibitors has become a hot spot in drug discovery.

MCE covalent inhibitor library contains 1,546 small molecules including identified covalent inhibitors and other bioactive molecules having common covalent reactive groups as warheads, such as acrylamides, activated terminal acetylenes, Sulfonyl fluorides/esters, cloracetamides, alkyl halides, epoxides, aziridines, disulfides, etc.

Small molecule covalent inhibitors, or irreversible inhibitors, are a type of inhibitors that exert their biological functions by irreversibly binding to target through covalent bonds. Compared with non-covalent inhibitors, covalent inhibitors have obvious advantages in bioactivity, such that covalent warheads can target rare residues of a particular target protein, thus leading to the development of highly selective inhibitors and achieving a more complete and continued target occupancy in living systems. In recent years, the distinct strengths of covalent inhibitors in overcoming drug resistance had been recognized. However, toxicity can be a real challenge related to this class of therapeutics due to their potential for off-target reactivity and has led to these drugs being disfavored as a drug class. The drug design and optimization of covalent inhibitors has become a hot spot in drug discovery.

MCE Lead-like Covalent Screening Library offers a valuable resource of 1,049 lead-like compounds with commonly used covalent warheads. These warheads, such as acrylamide, activated terminal alkyne, acyloxymethyl ketone, and boronic acid, are capable of reacting with specific amino acid residues, including cysteine, lysine, serine, and histidine. The inclusion of these reactive warheads in the library allows researchers to explore the potential of covalent inhibition, a powerful approach in drug discovery.

Small molecule covalent inhibitors, or irreversible inhibitors, are a type of inhibitors that exert their biological functions by irreversibly binding to target through covalent bonds. Compared with non-covalent inhibitors, covalent inhibitors have obvious advantages in bioactivity, such that covalent warheads can target rare residues of a particular target protein, thus leading to the development of highly selective inhibitors and achieving a more complete and continued target occupancy in living systems. In recent years, the distinct strengths of covalent inhibitors in overcoming drug resistance had been recognized. However, toxicity can be a real challenge related to this class of therapeutics due to their potential for off-target reactivity and has led to these drugs being disfavored as a drug class. The drug design and optimization of covalent inhibitors has become a hot spot in drug discovery.

MCE covalent inhibitor library contains 5,994 small molecules including identified covalent inhibitors and other molecules having common covalent reactive groups as warheads, such as acrylamides, activated terminal acetylenes, sulfonyl fluorides/esters, cloracetamides, alkyl halides, epoxides, aziridines, disulfides, etc.

MCE Covalent inhibitor Library plus, with more powerful screening capability, further complement Covalent inhibitor Library (HY-L036) by adding some fragment compounds with covalent warheads.

Cysteine proteases (CPs), a key enzyme family regulating physiological metabolism and mediating pathological processes (such as abnormal bone resorption, tumour invasion, and pathogen infection), represent a core therapeutic target for developing specific inhibitors in disease intervention. Currently reported CP inhibitors primarily achieve their inhibitory function by precisely binding to CP active pockets (e.g., S1-S4 non-primed regions or S1'-S2' primed regions) and forming covalent/non-covalent interactions with the active site cysteine residues, providing clear structural references for the development of novel inhibitors.

This compound library, designed based on the core strategy of "similarity-based known active structures", contains over 200 cysteine protease inhibitors. Leveraging AI-driven molecular screening technology, it retains the critical pharmacological and shape features of reported CP inhibitors, serving as a specialized tool for efficiently discovering novel cysteine protease inhibitors.