What is a selective receptor modulator?
Some drugs contain four fused chemical rings and are known as steroids. A nonsteroidal drug is a small molecule that does not contain the four fused chemical rings, but can interact with the same hormone receptor. When a drug can bind to the hormone receptor and elicit different effects in different tissues, it is called a selective receptor modulator. By blocking or stimulating a hormone receptor in a tissue-selective manner, it may be able to mimic the beneficial effects while simultaneously minimizing the unwanted effects of the natural or synthetic steroidal hormones. GTx is developing nonsteroidal selective receptor modulators.
