Virtual Screening Virtual screening (Figure ), alternatively referred to as computational screening, is a robust computer methodology employed in the field of drug exploration to expeditiously assess extensive collections of chemical compounds and ascertain prospective drug contenders that exhibit a high probability of binding to a specific target protein of interest ( ). The procedure involves docking several ligands, commonly of small size, into a target protein's binding site and then evaluating their interactions to determine the relative importance of compounds exhibiting the most significant binding affinity. Virtual screening is of utmost importance in the initial phases of drug development since it accelerates the identification of lead compounds with favourable pharmacological characteristics, including potency, selectivity, and drug-likeness ( ). The figure shows virtual screening, a computer technique used in drug research to precisely arrange multiple ligands into the binding area of a target protein. Virtual screening is a method that helps to quickly evaluate large chemical libraries in search of potential drug candidates with substantial pharmacological action and binding affinity. Since it speeds up the discovery of possible leads and improves the effectiveness of drug development pipelines ( ), this method is essential in the first phase of drug research.