We are excited to announce a new Special Issue by the European Biophysics Journal. This issue will focus on ligand binding to proteins and translation toward drug design. This interdisciplinary research area is at the interface of biophysical chemistry, molecular biophysics, biothermodynamics, structural biology, and medicinal chemistry. The issue is planned to cover a wide range of techniques including but not limited to isothermal titration calorimetry, thermal shift assay (DSF), differential scanning calorimetry, inhibition of enzymatic activity, surface plasmon resonance, microscale thermophoresis, X-ray crystallography, NMR, Cryo-EM, and other techniques that determine the thermodynamics, kinetics, or structure of the protein-ligand complex. All manuscripts addressing experimental, computational, or combined approaches to advance our understanding of small molecule recognition and specific binding by proteins toward better drug design are welcome.