Deconvolution approaches in screening compound mixtures

Combinatorial chemistry initiatives can be used to generate compound mixtures, and it has become a challenge to effectively screen these mixtures for activity against a specified target. Overall mixture activity can be readily measured, however it is not a straightforward matter to identify all those components giving rise to the total activity (a process referred to as deconvolution). This review discusses the attraction in preparing and screening mixtures, and also addresses the difficulties inherent in their screening. Attention is paid to the current approaches of achieving mixture deconvolution, including synthetic pooling, fractionation, affinity-based isolation, and techniques requiring no physical separation. Recent successes in mixture screening suggest a rekindled interest in this area.