LEXINGTON, Mass., June 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Phylos announced today that a new study published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry (Hammond, et al. volume 276, no. 24, pp. 20898-20906) demonstrates the use of the PROfusion(TM) technology, together with its proprietary tissue proteome libraries, for the discovery of new proteins that interact with a critical protein involved in apoptosis. Using the BCL-XL protein as bait, the scientists were able to rapidly isolate the three interacting family-member proteins previously identified in the literature, together with more than 40 other putative partners including many previously undiscovered proteins. These discoveries validate the use of the PROfusion(TM) technology for identifying new targets in disease-causing pathways. The tissue proteome libraries can be broadly applied toward understanding protein:protein, enzyme:substrate, and protein:drug interactions.
The study reports that the PROfusion(TM) technology has been enabled to identify cellular proteins that interact with one another, giving rise to a new method for understanding the complexity of the proteome. In the past, researchers have had only low-throughput methods for understanding how proteins interact to transmit signals, such as whether a cell should live or die, through the cell. The technology developed by the Phylos researchers demonstrates a high-throughput, multiplexed approach for rapidly identifying critical interactions between proteins.
``The data in this publication demonstrates three important advancements,'' said Brent Kreider, Ph.D., Phylos' vice president for biological research and an author on the paper. ``First, tissue proteome libraries have been created that represent functional protein domains as PROfusion(TM) molecules. Secondly, using these libraries, novel proprietary proteins can be rapidly identified and assigned a function-important for patenting purposes; and finally, the multiplex use of libraries for screening will allow unprecedented speed for probing the proteome. This technology is now a cornerstone of our target identification and validation program.''
The publication describes Phylos' success in applying its PROfusion(TM) technology, together with its tissue proteome libraries, to identify protein:protein interactions with the protein BCL-XL, an apoptotic protein. Apoptosis, or programmed cell death, is an active biochemical process in which abnormalities are known to cause disease, such as cancer, neurodegenerative disease, and cardiovascular disease. Specifically, BCL-XL has been implicated as a target for therapeutic intervention in cancer. In the study, Phylos researchers found the three known family-member protein partners that interact with BCL-XL, previously published by several laboratories using a variety of methods of experimentation, along with >40 novel interactions with known and unknown proteins. Taking advantage of the benefits of an in vitro methodology, these leads were further characterized to yield a subset among which >25% correspond to known or purported interactors. Phylos' ability to rapidly identify new targets in disease pathways will be useful for drug discovery and the development of proprietary biochips that profile these markers from biological samples.
Phylos is broadly applying its PROfusion(TM) technology to create an integrated program for mining the proteome to discover targets for drug intervention and creating novel therapeutics. An integral part of the company's business model is the development of protein biochips, capable of high-throughput profiling of biological samples to search for proteins that are elevated or depressed as a consequence of disease or drug administration. In the long term, Phylos plans to develop a novel class of biotherapeutics, based on its proprietary antibody-mimetic platform, as a useful alternative to monoclonal antibody therapeutics.
For additional information, visit the Company's Internet web site at www.Phylos.com |
