SOP for Hit Identification and Prioritization

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Hit Identification and Prioritization

1) Purpose

The purpose of this Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) is to describe the process for identifying and prioritizing hits during the drug discovery process. Hit identification is a critical step where compounds that exhibit desired biological activity against a specific target are selected from large compound libraries or screening assays. Prioritization ensures that the most promising candidates are advanced for further development and optimization. This SOP ensures that hit identification and prioritization are conducted in a consistent, reproducible, and systematic manner to support efficient drug discovery efforts.

2) Scope

This SOP covers the entire process of hit identification and prioritization, from the initial screening of compound libraries to the selection of lead candidates for further optimization and validation. It applies to all drug discovery teams involved in high-throughput screening (HTS), virtual screening, fragment-based drug design (FBDD), or other compound selection methods. This SOP is relevant across various therapeutic areas, including oncology, infectious diseases, and neurological disorders.

3) Responsibilities

Screening Scientists: Responsible for designing and executing the screening assays, analyzing the data from HTS or virtual screening, and identifying initial hit compounds that demonstrate promising biological activity.
Medicinal Chemists: Collaborate with screening scientists

to evaluate hit compounds and assess their drug-like properties. They also prioritize hits based on factors such as molecular structure, potency, and selectivity for the target.

Bioinformaticians: Assist in the data analysis of virtual screening or HTS hits, providing computational support to rank compounds based on predicted binding affinity, toxicity profiles, and other computational metrics.

Project Managers: Oversee the hit identification and prioritization process, ensuring milestones are met and resources are appropriately allocated. They also ensure communication across teams to maintain alignment with drug discovery goals.

Quality Assurance (QA): Ensure that hit identification and prioritization processes follow regulatory guidelines, internal protocols, and best practices. They ensure that data is reproducible, accurate, and properly documented for future reference.

4) Procedure

The following steps outline the detailed procedure for hit identification and prioritization:

Step 1: Screening Assay Design and Execution
1. Design appropriate screening assays to identify compounds that exhibit activity against the biological target. This can involve high-throughput screening (HTS), virtual screening, fragment-based drug design (FBDD), or other screening techniques.
2. Ensure that assays are optimized for reproducibility and accuracy. This may involve validating assay conditions, such as the correct protein concentration, assay buffer composition, and incubation time.
3. Execute the screening assays on compound libraries, including both small molecule and natural product libraries, depending on the drug discovery strategy.
Step 2: Initial Hit Identification
1. Analyze the results of the screening assays to identify compounds that exhibit significant biological activity against the target. Hits are typically selected based on their ability to bind to the target protein or modulate its activity, with consideration for statistical significance.
2. Use appropriate cutoffs (e.g., % inhibition, IC50 values) to select initial hits from the screening data. For HTS, select hits that meet predefined criteria for activity in the primary assay.
3. Ensure that identified hits demonstrate consistency across replicates and are not false positives due to experimental artifacts, assay conditions, or compound interference.
Step 3: Hit Validation
1. Validate the identified hits through secondary assays to confirm their activity against the target. Secondary assays may include orthogonal methods such as enzymatic assays, binding studies (e.g., SPR, ITC), or cell-based assays to verify biological activity.
2. Confirm that the hits exhibit specificity for the target protein by testing them against a panel of unrelated proteins to rule out non-specific activity.
3. Perform dose-response experiments to determine the potency of each hit and confirm that the observed activity is dose-dependent.
Step 4: Hit Prioritization
1. Prioritize the validated hits based on a variety of criteria, including potency, selectivity, binding affinity, molecular weight, and drug-like properties. Consider properties such as solubility, lipophilicity (logP), and pharmacokinetics (ADMET).
2. Assess the chemical diversity of the hits to identify unique structures that may lead to novel drug-like compounds.
3. Utilize computational methods such as QSAR (Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationship) or docking studies to predict the binding affinity of the hits and provide additional insights into their potential for optimization.
Step 5: Compound Prioritization and Selection for Lead Optimization
1. Based on the hit prioritization criteria, select the top-ranked compounds for further optimization. These compounds should be those with the best combination of biological activity, drug-like properties, and potential for further development.
2. Ensure that the selected hits are synthesized and tested for further validation, including in vitro assays (e.g., receptor binding, enzyme inhibition) and in vivo studies (e.g., animal models) to assess their therapeutic potential.
3. Prepare a list of prioritized compounds that are ready for lead optimization and subsequent development phases.
Step 6: Documentation and Reporting
1. Document all hit identification and prioritization activities, including screening assay details, hit validation results, prioritization criteria, and selection rationale.
2. Prepare a comprehensive Hit Identification and Prioritization Report that includes detailed information on the hit selection process, validation assays, prioritization metrics, and recommendations for the next steps in the drug discovery pipeline.
3. Ensure that all data is stored securely and is easily accessible for future reference, regulatory compliance, and data integrity.

5) Abbreviations

HTS: High-Throughput Screening
IC50: Half-Maximal Inhibitory Concentration
SPR: Surface Plasmon Resonance
ITC: Isothermal Titration Calorimetry
ADMET: Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion, Toxicity

6) Documents

The following documents should be maintained throughout the hit identification and prioritization process:

Hit Identification and Prioritization Report
Screening Assay Data Sheets
Secondary Assay and Validation Results
Prioritization and Hit Selection Criteria

7) Reference

References to regulatory guidelines and scientific literature that support this SOP:

FDA Guidance for Industry on Drug Discovery
Scientific literature on hit identification, prioritization, and validation techniques

8) SOP Version

Version 1.0: Initial version of the SOP.