Biological Targets of Therapeutic, Diagnostic, or Theranostic Interest

The biological target is anything within a living organism to which another entity (such as an endogenous ligand or a medicine) is directed and/or attaches, causing the organism's behaviour or function to alter. Proteins and nucleic acids are two major types of biological targets. The term can refer to the biological target of a pharmacologically active chemical ingredient, the receptor target of a hormone (such as insulin), or any other target of an external stimulus, depending on the context. Proteins such as enzymes, ion channels, and receptors are the most common biological targets. The word "biological target" is widely used in pharmaceutical research to refer to a native protein in the body whose activity is modified by a drug, resulting in a specific effect, which could be a beneficial therapeutic effect or a detrimental side effect. The biological target is frequently referred to as a pharmacological target in this context. The first step in the reverse pharmacology strategy to medicine discovery is to identify the biological origin of a disease and prospective therapeutic targets. Potential therapeutic targets do not have to be disease-causing, but they must be disease-modifying by definition. Forward pharmacology, based on phenotypic screening to identify "orphan" ligands whose targets are then identified using target deconvolution, is an alternate method of identifying new therapeutic targets.

• G Protein-Coupled Receptors
• Enzymes
• Ion Channels
• Ligand-Gated Ion Channels
• Voltage-Gated Ion Channels
• Nuclear Hormone Receptors
• Structural Proteins
• Membrane Transport Proteins
• Nucleic Acids