Process by which a drug candidate is designed after an initial lead compound is identified, ” or altered to make them more effective and safer. Relevant aspects like affinity, selectivity, mode of action, synthesizability and ADMET-properties are typically improved Aims to maximize bonded and non-bonded interactions with the active site of selected drug targets to increase selectivity, reduce side effects and diminish toxicity, through a dedicated screening funnel of both in vitro and in vivo assays