Virtual Screening: An Alternative or Complement to High Throughput Screening

In the first few years of the 21st century, the human genome will be fully sequenced. This should provide us with the sequence and overall function of all human genes as well as the complete genome for many micro-organisms. Subsequently, it is hoped, by means of powerful bioinformatic tools, we should be able to determine the gene variants that contribute to various multifactorial diseases and genes that exist in certain infectious agents but not humans. As a consequence, this will allow us to define the most appropriate levels for drug intervention. It can be expected that the number of potential drug targets will increase, possibly by a factor of 10 or more. Nevertheless, sequencing the human genome or, for that matter, the genome of other species will only be the starting point for the understanding of their biological function. Structural genomics is a likely follow-up, combined with new techniques to validate the therapeutic relevance of such newly discovered targets. Accordingly, it can be expected that we will witness a substantial increase in novel putative targets for drugs. To address these new targets effectively, we require new approaches and innovative tools.