Design and Development of Small Molecules from Somatic, Stem Cell Reprogramming, and Therapy

Abstract

Nuclear reprogramming changes the cell fate and plays a vital role in obtaining pluripotent stem cells. It is difficult to explain clear molecular mechanism of nuclear reprogramming. Direct reprogramming of somatic cell types into desired cell types can be achieved by using specific genes and small molecules. Computational methods and molecular modeling may provide the insight to explain the landscape of the nuclear reprogramming and stem cell pluripotency. The structural and functional information of protein is required for annotation. In the absence of experimental structures, computational methods like homology modeling will be employed to decipher the protein structure and active sites. By fold identification and binding site-based ligand association, functional annotation will be carried out. Molecular docking and pharmacophore modeling are used to optimize the lead compounds or small molecules for direct conversion of somatic cell types and stem cells into specific cell types, which also help in identification of the better targets that aid in drug design process in cell-based therapy and tissue engineering.