molecules of the month

2. The Novartis LTA4H metalloenzyme inhibitor, LYS006, is a selective oral agent in multiple Ph. II studies to treat inflammatory diseases including ulcerative colitis and NASH. The starting points for this picomolar inhibitor were identified through a fragment based approach using differential scanning fluorimetry (DSF) as an initial binding assay, confirming hits with X-ray crystallography. Structure based fragment-merging led to a remarkably potent amine lead, and early hERG and CYP inhibition signals were dealt with by introducing a carboxylic acid to the molecule.