Compound Submission to the MLSMR - Benefits to Chemists

The Small Molecule Repository will develop a collection of small organic molecules that can be used as chemical probes to study cellular pathways in greater depth. This will in turn provide new ways to explore the functions of major components of the cell in both healthy and diseased states. In order to provide these benefits, the library of small molecules must contain a sufficient number of diverse compounds to be screened for a large number of possible new activities and applications. To obtain the maximum number of high-quality diverse small molecule compounds, the MLSMR will acquire compounds from several sources, including commercial compound vendors, grantees funded through the Molecular Libraries Pilot-Scale Libraries for High-Throughput Screening announcement, and the chemistry research community. In order to acquire compounds from this broader chemistry community, the NIH will release an NIH Guide Notice, “Solicitation for Compounds for HTS,” which has been designed to solicit compounds from extramural investigators for the purposes of inclusion in the MLSMR. By submitting small samples of compounds to the MLSMR, contributing investigators may benefit in some important ways:

1. The MLSCN will be implementing an unprecedented number and variety of biological screening assays. While chemists frequently collaborate to obtain screening data on their compounds, providing samples to the MLSCN will greatly increase the chances of finding interesting new bioactivities.
2. HTS hits on contributed compounds have the potential to stimulate new research programs to further develop potent, selective, and broadly useful modulators of novel biological targets.
3. Interdisciplinary contacts will be facilitated by PubChem, which will identify the source of each compound and each assay. PubChem will be universally accessible, and the HTS data will be subject to extensive data mining. This resource may inspire biologists and chemists to develop collaborative relationships when interesting patterns of bioactivity are observed, leading to new research projects and new opportunities for grant funding.
4. The wide variety of HTS assays implemented in the MLSCN may provide opportunities to identify new uses for well-known, bioactive compounds, including approved drugs.
5. The materials contributed to the MLSMR will contribute to a thorough and unprecedented investigation of gene product function.