life cycles

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a hepatotropic enveloped positive- strand RNA virus (family Flaviviridae) that infects the parenchymal cells of the liver. HCV infection is a significant public health burden. Globally, an estimated 71 million people have chronic hepatitis C virus infection. A significant number of those who are chronically infected will develop cirrhosis or liver cancer. To date, there is no vaccine against HCV, and combination pegylated alpha interferon (pIFN-) and ribavirin, the main standard-of-care treatment for HCV, is effective in only a subset of patients and is associated with a wide spectrum of toxic side effects and complications. More recently, new therapeutic approaches that target essential components of the HCV life cycle have been developed, including direct-acting antiviral (DAA) that specifically block a viral enzyme or functional protein and host-targeted agents (HTA) that block interactions between host proteins and viral components that are essential to the viral life cycle. However, the genetic diversity of HCV viruses and the stage of liver disease (i.e., cirrhosis) are revealing themselves as obstacles for effective, pan-genotypic treatments. There still exists a need for the discovery and development of new HCV inhibitors. In particular, since the future of HCV therapy will likely consist of a cocktail approach using multiple inhibitors that target different steps of infection, new antivirals targeting all steps of the viral infection cycle.

MCE offers a unique collection of 311 compounds with identified and potential anti-HCV activity. MCE Anti- Hepatitis C Virus Compound Library is a useful tool for discovery new anti-HCV drugs and other anti-infection research.

Metabolism is the set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms. Metabolic pathways are enzyme-mediated biochemical reactions that lead to biosynthesis (anabolism) or breakdown (catabolism) of natural product small molecules within a cell or tissue. Acting as catalysts, enzymes are crucial to metabolism - they allow a reaction to proceed more rapidly - and they also allow the regulation of the rate of a metabolic reaction. Proteases are used throughout an organism for various metabolic processes. Proteases control a great variety of physiological processes that are critical for life, including the immune response, cell cycle, cell death, wound healing, food digestion, and protein and organelle recycling. Imbalances in metabolic activities have been found to be critical in a number of pathologies, such as cardiovascular diseases, inflammation, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases.

MCE designs a unique collection of 4,707 Metabolism/Protease-related small molecules that act as a useful tool for drug discovery of metabolism-related diseases.

Glucose homeostasis is tightly regulated to meet the energy requirements of the vital organs and maintain an individual’s health. Glucose metabolism includes glycolysis, tricarboxylic acid cycle, pentose phosphate pathway, oxidative phosphorylation and other metabolic pathways. Glucose is the major carbon source that provides the main energy for life. Glucose metabolism dysregulation is also implicated in many diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, neurodegenerative diseases and even cancer.

MCE offers a unique collection of 1,072 compounds related to glucose metabolism, which target glucose metabolism related targets, such as GLUT, Hexokinase, Pyruvate Kinase, IDH, etc. MCE glucose metabolism library is a powerful tool for studying glucose metabolism and drug discovery of diseases related to glucose metabolism.

Angiogenesis is the physiological process through which new blood vessels are formed from pre-existing vessels. It occurs in various physiological processes e.g. embryonic development, menstrual cycle, exercise and wound healing etc. Angiogenesis is regulated by both endogenous activators and inhibitors. Some key activators of angiogenesis include vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), angiogenin, TGF-β, etc. whereas angiogenesis inhibitors are angiostatin, endostatin, interferon, platelet factor 4, etc. The loss of balance between these opposing signals leads to life threatening diseases like cancer, cardiovascular and ischemic diseases etc. which are thus controlled by exogenous angiogenesis activators (for cardiovascular/ischemic disorders) and inhibitors (for cancer).

MCE offers a unique collection of 2,189 compounds with validated angiogenesis targets modulating properties. MCE angiogenesis-related compound library is an effective tool for angiogenesis research and discovery of angiogenesis-related drugs.