Accurate prediction of relative binding affinities of a series of HIV‐1 protease inhibitors using semi‐empirical quantum mechanical charge

A major challenge in computer‐aided drug design is the accurate estimation of ligand binding affinity. Here, a new approach that combines the adaptive steered molecular dynamics (ASMD) and partial atomic charges calculated by semi‐empirical quantum mechanics (SQMPC), namely ASMD‐SQMPC, is suggested to predict the ligand binding affinities, with 24 HIV‐1 protease inhibitors as testing examples. In the ASMD‐SQMPC, the relative binding free energy...