Document Type

Thesis

Date of Degree Completion

Spring 2008

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science

Department

Chemistry

Committee Chair

Dr. Levente Fabry-Astalos, Department of Chemistry

Second Committee Member

Dr. JoAnn Peters

Third Committee Member

Dr. Andrew A. Piacsek, Science Honors Research Program

Abstract

HIV/ AIDS has affected about 40 million people. One type of drug that is used to treat HIV/AIDS is a protease inhibitor. HIV-I protease is an enzyme responsible for the release of mature HIV viral particles in the body. HIV-I protease eventually becomes resistant to the inhibitors that are used as drugs and new inhibitors are needed. This research builds on a previous research effort, in which structures for HIV -1 protease inhibitors were designed using molecular modeling methods, including neural networks. These inhibitors were designed to possess better inhibitory properties, and possibly have increased bioavailability and less toxicity than the inhibitors currently in use. These novel structures are currently being synthesized using known methodologies; their inhibitory values will be determined by outside collaborators and then compared to inhibitory values predicted by the neural networks used to design them. We hope that these compounds will become lead compounds for further drug discovery for HIV/ AIDS.

Comments

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