Pharmacological Target

A pharmacological target is a biochemical element which an endogenous ligand or drug interacts with to elicit change. Interaction of a drug with a pharmacological target is typically due to binding with the target. Therefore, improving the understanding of a pharmacological target is vital to improve the response a drug can elicit.

A pharmacological target can generally be categorised as a receptor, ion channel, carrier molecule or enzyme. For example, the receptor for insulin is a well-studied pharmacological target to improve the understanding of diabetes. Enzyme modulators help alter pathway activation via interaction with a pharmacological target. One is acein, a peptide that interacts with high affinity to angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE I), leading to dopamine release. Ion channel interactions can be altered to peptides such as compstatin, a cyclic tridecapeptide that binds to and selectively inhibits the interaction between C3 and convertase. Thereby preventing the formation of C3a and C3b and the activation of the complement system. At Cambridge Research Biochemicals, we strive to offer the latest peptides to help map the pharmacological targets related to disease and ageing.