What are the natural sources of a drug target?
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Plants, microorganisms, fungi and bacteria have been invaluable in drug design and continue to be a rich source of natural products in the drug discovery process. The war against various multi-resistant pathogens requires advanced and more effective therapeutic agents.
What is a semi synthetic drug?
Semi-synthetic drugs are generally made by converting starting materials from natural sources into final products via chemical reactions. Examples of semi-synthetic medicine include the antibiotic, penicillin, and the chemotherapy. Commonly called ‘chemo’.
What are examples of natural compounds?

Examples of natural compounds are sugars, enzymes, hormones, lipids, antigens, fatty acids, neurotransmitters, nucleic acids, proteins, peptides, amino acids, vitamins, lectins, some alkaloids and terpenoids, etc. Synthetic compounds are obtained by allowing the compounds to interact in a chemical reaction.
What are the sources of synthetic drugs?
Synthetic drugs are chemical compounds produced in a laboratory. They can be produced commercially by drug manufacturers for valid medical purposes and are diverted from legal channels or produced illegally in clandestine laboratories for illicit markets worldwide[1].

Why natural products are attractive for drug discovery?
It has long been recognized that natural-product structures have the characteristics of high chemical diversity, biochemical specificity and other molecular properties that make them favorable as lead structures for drug discovery, and which serve to differentiate them from libraries of synthetic and combinatorial …
What are different sources of drugs?
Drugs are obtained from six major sources:
- Plant sources.
- Animal sources.
- Mineral/ Earth sources.
- Microbiological sources.
- Semi synthetic sources/ Synthetic sources.
- Recombinant DNA technology.
What are examples of semi-synthetic drugs?
Examples of semi-synthetic medicines are antibiotic penicillin (12) and paclitaxel (an anticancer drug derived from the Pacific yew tree, Taxus brevifolia) (13).
What are 3 examples of organic compounds?
Examples of organic compounds are carbohydrates, fats (lipids), proteins, and nucleic acids, which are the basis for the molecules of life. Organic compounds also include petroleum and natural gas, which are the main components of fossil fuels.
What are the 4 sources of drugs?
Sources of Drugs
- Plant sources.
- Animal sources.
- Mineral/ Earth sources.
- Microbiological sources.
- Semi synthetic sources/ Synthetic sources.
- Recombinant DNA technology.
What are the 3 sources of drugs?
Sources of drugs may be natural, synthetic, and biosynthetic.