Pan-assay interference compounds (PAINS) are

chemical compound A chemical compound is a chemical substance composed of many identical molecules (or molecular entities) containing atoms from more than one chemical element held together by chemical bonds. A molecule consisting of atoms of only one element ...

s that often give

false positive A false positive is an error in binary classification in which a test result incorrectly indicates the presence of a condition (such as a disease when the disease is not present), while a false negative is the opposite error, where the test result ...

results in high-throughput screens. PAINS tend to

react REACT or React may refer to: Science and technology *REACT (telescope), a telescope at Fenton Hill Observatory, New Mexico, US Computing * React (JavaScript library) , a JavaScript library for building user interfaces, from Facebook ** React Nati ...

nonspecifically with numerous

biological target A biological target is anything within a living organism to which some other entity (like an endogenous ligand or a drug) is directed and/or binds, resulting in a change in its behavior or function. Examples of common classes of biological targets ...

s rather than specifically affecting one desired target. A number of disruptive

functional group In organic chemistry, a functional group is a substituent or moiety in a molecule that causes the molecule's characteristic chemical reactions. The same functional group will undergo the same or similar chemical reactions regardless of the rest ...

s are shared by many PAINS. While a number of filters have been proposed and are used in

virtual screening Virtual screening (VS) is a computational technique used in drug discovery to search libraries of small molecules in order to identify those structures which are most likely to bind to a drug target, typically a protein receptor or enzyme. Virtua ...

and

computer-aided drug design Drug design, often referred to as rational drug design or simply rational design, is the inventive process of finding new medications based on the knowledge of a biological target. The drug is most commonly an organic small molecule that acti ...

, the accuracy of filters with regard to compounds they flag and don't flag has been criticized. Common PAINS include

toxoflavin Toxoflavin is a toxin produced by a variety of bacteria including ''Burkholderia gladioli''. It also has antibiotic properties. Toxoflavin acts as a pH indicator A pH indicator is a halochromic chemical compound added in small amounts to a ...

isothiazolone Isothiazolinone (sometimes isothiazolone) is an organic compound with the formula (CH)2SN(H)CO. A white solid, it is structurally related to isothiazole. Isothiazolone itself is of limited interest, but several of its derivatives are widely used ...

s, hydroxyphenyl hydrazones,

curcumin Curcumin is a bright yellow chemical produced by plants of the ''Curcuma longa'' species. It is the principal curcuminoid of turmeric (''Curcuma longa''), a member of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae. It is sold as a herbal supplement, cosmetic ...

, phenol-sulfonamides,

rhodanine Rhodanine is a 5-membered heterocyclic organic compound possessing a thiazolidine core. It was discovered in 1877 by Marceli Nencki who named it ''"Rhodaninsaure"'' in reference to its synthesis from ammonium rhodanide (known as ammonium thiocya ...

s, enones,

quinone The quinones are a class of organic compounds that are formally "derived from aromatic compounds

uch as benzene or naphthalene Uch ( pa, ; ur, ), frequently referred to as Uch Sharīf ( pa, ; ur, ; ''"Noble Uch"''), is a historic city in the southern part of Pakistan's Punjab province. Uch may have been founded as Alexandria on the Indus, a town founded by Alexand ...

by conversion of an even number of –CH= groups into –C(=O)– groups with any necessary rearrangement of double ...

s, and

catechol Catechol ( or ), also known as pyrocatechol or 1,2-dihydroxybenzene, is a toxic organic compound with the molecular formula . It is the ''ortho'' isomer of the three isomeric benzenediols. This colorless compound occurs naturally in trace amoun ...

See also

References

Further reading