Combining on-chip synthesis of a focused combinatorial library with computational target prediction reveals imidazopyridine GPCR ligands.

Using the example of the Ugi three-component reaction we report a fast and efficient microfluidic-assisted entry into the imidazopyridine scaffold, where building block prioritization was coupled to a new computational method for predicting ligand-target associations. We identified an innovative GPCR-modulating combinatorial chemotype featuring ligand-efficient adenosine A1/2B and adrenergic α1A/B receptor antagonists. Our results suggest the tight integration of microfluidics-assisted synthesis with computer-based target prediction as a viable approach to rapidly generate bioactivity-focused combinatorial compound libraries with high success rates.