Reversible and irreversible small molecule inhibitors of monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) investigated by biophysical techniques.

Monoamine oxidase B (MAO-B) plays a key role in the metabolism of dopamine, a neurotransmitter critical for the maintenance of cognitive function. Consequently, MAO-B is an important therapeutic target for disorders characterized by a decline in dopaminergic neurotransmission, including Parkinson's disease (PD). An emerging strategy in drug discovery is to utilize the biophysical approaches of thermal shift and isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) to gain insight into binding modality and identify thermodynamically privileged chemical scaffolds.