proximumin

Proximumin is a fictional small-molecule compound used primarily in educational contexts to illustrate concepts in receptor pharmacology and drug design. In standard treatments of pharmacology, proximumin is described as a hypothetical ligand that binds selectively to a notional proximum receptor, a G protein–coupled receptor model used for teaching functional selectivity and allosteric modulation. The compound and receptor pair are not known to exist in vivo.

Chemical characteristics and synthesis: Proximumin is depicted as a lipophilic amine-containing compound featuring an aromatic core with a basic tertiary amine. In textbooks, it is said to be synthesized through a short sequence starting from readily available aniline derivatives, forming a substituted anilide followed by cyclization. The exact structure varies across educational materials to illustrate different design strategies.

Pharmacology and mechanism: In the fictional framework, proximumin acts as a selective allosteric modulator of the proximum receptor, displaying partial agonist activity and positive cooperativity with endogenous signaling. It is used to demonstrate concepts such as potency, efficacy, selectivity, and receptor reserve.

Uses and status: Proximumin has no clinical data and is not evaluated by regulatory agencies. It exists only in theoretical discussions, classroom demonstrations, and computational simulations. It is commonly used alongside other fictitious ligands to explain drug-receptor interactions and to test teaching models. As a fictitious compound, proximumin has no established safety profile.