User Guide

About MultiTargetDB

MultiTargetDB is a comprehensive database of multi-target drug molecules integrating data from ChEMBL 36, BindingDB, TTD (Therapeutic Target Database), DrugBank 5.1.15, and KEGG.

Currently containing 226,173 multi-target molecules and 6,761 protein targets with 683,991 activity records, it is the largest dedicated multi-target drug discovery database to date.

Core Concepts
Multi-target moleculeA molecule with activity (pChEMBL ≥ 6.0) against ≥ 2 unique protein targets in Homo sapiens or pathogen organisms.
pChEMBLStandardized activity metric: -log10(affinity value in Molar). Higher = stronger binding. pChEMBL 6 ≡ 1 μM, pChEMBL 9 ≡ 1 nM.
Clinical moleculeMulti-target molecules from TTD's gold-standard clinical dataset (approved/investigational drugs with known multi-target profiles).
Pfam stratificationClassification based on protein domains of a molecule's targets: Homologous (same Pfam family) or Cross-Family (different Pfam families).
Organism filterWeb interface shows only Human and Pathogen targets. Animal model targets are retained in the database but hidden from display.
Search Guide
Molecule Search

Search by InChIKey (full or partial), SMILES string, or compound name.

  • Navigate to Molecules or use the top search bar
  • Example: search imatinib by name, or KTUFNOKKBVMGRW by partial InChIKey
Target Search

Search by UniProt Accession, Gene Symbol, or Protein Name.

  • Navigate to Targets
  • Example: search EGFR or P00533
Target Combination Search

Find molecules that are active against multiple targets simultaneously.

  • Navigate to Combo Search
  • Add targets by typing gene symbols and selecting from autocomplete suggestions
  • Choose AND logic (hits ALL targets) or OR logic (hits ANY target)
  • Results include an activity matrix heatmap showing pChEMBL values across all selected targets
Browse Features
KEGG PathwaysBrowse 370 KEGG pathways and see associated targets and their multi-target molecules.
KEGG DiseasesBrowse 2,493 diseases and discover associated multi-target drug targets.
ATC ClassificationBrowse DrugBank drugs by WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification.
Network VisualizationInteractive Cytoscape.js network graphs:
  • Co-occurrence: target-target co-occurrence network
  • Bipartite: molecule-target interaction network
  • Pathway: pathway-target-disease multi-layer network
REST API

Full interactive documentation: Swagger API Docs

Quick Examples
# Get molecule detail
curl https://your-server/api/v1/molecule/BJRANMBFDCJTTQ-UHFFFAOYSA-N

# Search molecules by name
curl "https://your-server/api/v1/search?q=imatinib&type=molecule"

# Search targets
curl "https://your-server/api/v1/search?q=EGFR&type=target"

# Target combination search (AND logic)
curl "https://your-server/api/v1/search/combination?targets=P00533,P04626,P35968&logic=and"

# Database statistics
curl https://your-server/api/v1/statistics

# Batch query (POST)
curl -X POST https://your-server/api/v1/batch \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"inchikeys": ["BJRANMBFDCJTTQ-UHFFFAOYSA-N", "KTUFNOKKBVMGRW-UHFFFAOYSA-N"]}'
Data Dictionary
TableColumnDescription
moleculesinchikeyIUPAC InChIKey (PK)
canonical_smilesRDKit canonical SMILES
is_clinical1 = TTD gold-standard clinical multi-target drug
n_targetsNumber of unique Human+Pathogen targets
compound_namePubChem compound name (if available)
pfam_stratificationhomologous / cross_family / unknown
sourceChEMBL;BindingDB;TTD_MultiTarget (semicolon-separated)
activitiespchemblStandardized -log10(affinity in M)
affinity_typeIC50, Ki, Kd, etc.
organism_categoryhuman / pathogen / animal_model / other / unknown
drugbank_infogroupsapproved;investigational;withdrawn (semicolon-separated)
drug_actionaction_typeinhibitor, agonist, antagonist, activator, binder, substrate, etc.
How to Cite

Pan J. et al. (2026) MultiTargetDB: a comprehensive database for multi-target drug discovery integrating ChEMBL, BindingDB, TTD, DrugBank, and KEGG. Nucleic Acids Research.