Abstract Recently, a class of small molecules that thermally stabilize the tumor suppressor p53 was selected from a small-molecule library. This, and other recent work, demonstrates the feasibility of taking a lead from nature and selecting new classes of

Abstract Vancomycin binds to bacterial cell-wall intermediates to achieve its antibiotic effect. Infections of vancomycin-resistant enterococci are, however, becoming an increasing problem; the bacteria are resistant because they synthesize different cell-wall intermediates. The enzymes involved in cell-wall biosynthesis, therefore, are potential targets for combating this resistance. Recent biochemical and crystallographic results are providing mechanistic and structural details about some of these targets. Article Outline