About half of all drugs, ranging from morphine to penicillin, come from compounds that are from—or have been derived from—nature. This includes many cancer drugs, which are toxic enough to kill cancer cells. So how do the organisms that make these toxic substances protect themselves from the harmful effects? Scientists on the Florida campus of…
Scientists Find Potential Disease-Fighting ‘Warheads’ Hidden in Bacteria
Bacteria found in soil may harbor a potential game-changer for drug design. A new study by Scripps Research, published in Nature Communications, scientists could build better drugs by learning from bacteria-derived molecules called thiocarboxylic acids. The finding comes from Ben Shen, Ph.D., and his colleagues on the Florida campus of Scripps Research. The team investigates…
Tumor-Like Spheres Help Scientists Discover Smarter Cancer Drugs
Cancer is a disease often driven by mutations in genes. As researchers learn more about these genes, and the proteins they code for, they are seeking smarter drugs to target them. The ultimate goal is to find ways to stop cancer cells from multiplying out of control, thereby blocking the growth and spread of tumors.…
New Chemistry Method Simplifies Late-Stage Modification of Drug Compounds
How Flu Shot Manufacturing Forces Influenza to Mutate
According to a new study from scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), the common practice of growing influenza vaccine components in chicken eggs disrupts the major antibody target site on the virus surface, rendering the flu vaccine less effective in humans. “Now we can explain—at an atomic level—why egg-based vaccine production is causing problems,”…
Researchers Explore Ways That a Drug Like Avandia Can Be Made Safer
With the heightened concerns over the dangerous side effects of the once-popular antidiabetic drug Avandia, researchers at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) in Jupiter, Florida, are working to understand how small molecules, like those in Avandia, can have such varied effects throughout the body. The insights could help researchers design new drugs with better efficacy…
A New Approach to Cancer Drug Discovery
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have developed and demonstrated a promising new strategy for the discovery of novel anti-cancer therapies. The TSRI scientists, collaborating with scientists at Pfizer, used their new approach to find small-molecule inhibitors of a protein that is important for the growth of non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLCs). These cancers represent…
Scientists Awarded $2.5 Million Collaborative Grant to Develop New Diabetes Treatment
San Diego Team Tests Delivery Mode for Potential HIV Vaccine
Scientists Jump Hurdle in HIV Vaccine Design
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have made another important advance in HIV vaccine design. The development was possible thanks to previous studies at TSRI showing the structures of a protein on HIV’s surface, called the envelope glycoprotein. The scientists used these structures to design a mimic of the viral protein from a different…
Modified Antibiotic Works its ‘Magic’ Against Bacterial Resistance
Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have given new superpowers to a lifesaving antibiotic called vancomycin, an advance that could eliminate the threat of antibiotic-resistant infections for years to come. The researchers, led by Dale Boger, co-chair of TSRI’s Department of Chemistry, discovered a way to structurally modify vancomycin to make an already-powerful version…
Researchers Discover Key to Drug Resistance in Common Breast Cancer Treatment
Drug Discovery: Predicting Health Impact of Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals
Scripps Florida Scientists Discover New Natural Source of Potent Anti-Cancer Drugs
Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have developed an efficient process to rapidly discover new “enediyne natural products” from soil microbes that could be further developed into extremely potent anticancer drugs. The study highlights microbial natural products as abundant sources of new drug leads. The researchers’ discovery process involves prioritizing…