Ligand binding analysis for human α5β1 integrin:: Strategies for designing new α5β1 integrin antagonists

We report a three-dimensional model of the alpha 5 beta 1 integrin headgroup bound to the most potent and selective ligand (SJ749) known to date. The model was built using the comparative protein modeling method, and it is consistent with experimental data. From this study, we identified two potentially important regions in the alpha 5 beta 1 receptor that are peculiar to this integrin and might be worth considering for drug targeting.