Yeast and drug discovery

Abstract.

Advanced genetic techniques, along with the high degree of conservation of basic cellular processes, have made the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae a valuable system for identification of new drug targets, target-based and non-target-based drug screening, and detailed analysis of the cellular effects of drugs. Yeast also presents a convenient system for antifungal drug discovery because it is closely related to Candida albicans, a major human pathogen. Many yeast genes remain poorly characterized, and most of the sophisticated techniques in yeast have been in widespread use less than a decade – a period shorter than the typical cycle from target identification to marketing approval for a new drug. It is likely that most of the benefits of yeast in discovery and development of therapeutic compounds have yet to be realized.