Drug Discovery with DNA-Encoded Chemical Libraries

DNA-encoded chemical libraries represent a novel avenue for the facile discovery of small molecule ligands against target proteins of biological or pharmaceutical importance. Library members consist of small molecules covalently attached to unique DNA fragments that serve as amplifiable identification barcodes. This encoding allows the in vitro selection of ligands at subpicomolar concentrations from large library populations by affinity capture on a target protein of interest, in analogy to established technologies for the selection of binding polypeptides (e.g., antibodies). Different library formats have been explored by various groups, allowing the construction of chemical libraries comprising up to millions of DNA-encoded compounds. Libraries before and after selection have been characterized by PCR amplification of the DNA codes and subsequent relative quantification of library members using high-throughput sequencing. The most enriched compounds have then been further analyzed in biological assays, in the presence or in the absence of linked DNA. This article reviews experimental strategies used for the construction of DNA-encoded chemical libraries, revealing how selection, decoding, and hit validation technologies have been used for drug discovery programs.