Binding Specificity and Causal Selection in Drug Design
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10708262 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Oliver M Lean (0000-0002-2787-8441, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 87 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 70-90 |
| Publication date | 2020-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Philosophy of Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0031-8248 • E-ISSN: 1539-767X |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1086/706093 |
| OpenAlex | W2955424951 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 20 |
Binding specificity is a centrally important concept in molecular biology, yet it has received little philosophical attention. Here I aim to remedy this by analyzing binding specificity as a causal property. I focus on the concept’s role in drug design, where it is highly prized and hence directly studied. From a causal perspective, understanding why binding specificity is a valuable property of drugs contributes to an understanding of causal selection—of how and why scientists distinguish between causes, not just causes from noncauses. In particular, the specificity of drugs is precisely what underwrites their value as experimental interventions on biological processes
Biology · Causal structure · Computational biology · Epistemology · Focus (optics) · Machine learning · Perspective (graphical) · Property (philosophy) · Selection (genetic algorithm) · Value (mathematics) · Artificial Intelligence · Computational Drug Discovery Methods · Computer Science · Gene Regulatory Network Analysis · Pharmacogenetics and Drug Metabolism · Philosophy · Psychology
Aus Theorie und Praxis der Chemotherapie
Genetics and Philosophy
The New Mechanical Philosophy
Causation in biology
Causes That Make a Difference
Nothing in Biology Makes Sense except in the Light of Evolution
Measuring Causal Specificity
Thinking about Mechanisms
Which Kind of Causal Specificity Matters Biologically
On the Limits of Causal Modeling
High-Level Explanation and the Interventionist’s ‘Variables Problem’
| Unique citing works | 3 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,6 |
| Citation span | 2021 - 2025 (5) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 3 |