New open access drug database launches

A new online database detailing the properties and activities of drugs on human cells has been launched. The system, ChEMBLdb, will focus on using information surrounding the human genome to develop new drug compounds.

The database is hosted by the European Molecular Biology Laboratory's European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI) and contains over 2.4 million records of drug compounds and their effects on biological systems. The data includes information on how small molecules bind to their targets, how they affect cells and whole organisms, as well as information on the molecules' absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and toxicity.

"We hope ChEMBLdb will assist the translation of genomic-based insights into innovative drug therapies. We are pleased that there has already been big demand for ChEMBLdb data – not only from large pharmaceutical companies but also from academic institutions and small companies who will particularly benefit from free access to the data,” says Dr John Overington, leader of the ChEMBL team at EMBL-EBI.

The study of drug compounds is important to developing new medicines, as the effects of various compounds on human genes must be known in order for these new solutions to be established.

R Alan Schafer, Director of Science Funding at the Wellcome Trust, who financed the transferral of the system from biotech firm Galapagos NV in 2008, says: “ChEMBLdb will be a major resource of information for driving forward medicinal chemistry and drug development in the UK and internationally."

For more information, contact Louisa Wright at louisa@ebi.ac.uk

Published: Tuesday, 19th January 2010 by Tom Freeman

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