With the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010 and most provisions due to take effect in 2014, it’s reasonable to ask what MD Anderson is doing to prepare.
Fall 2013 : Understanding epigenetics to develop new therapies
Revealing structural insights
John Ladbury, Ph.D., and Guillaume Poncet-Montange, Ph.D., crystalize proteins, such as TRIM24 (green), in complex with small molecules or biological binding partners. In turn, these solved structures guide the chemists in their design of small molecules with improved properties.
Structural biologists work at the intersection of biology and chemistry, as they determine the physical structure of proteins. The IACS collaboration with Ladbury and Poncet-Montange has enabled the project to progress rapidly, as they provide critical insights on how IACS’ small molecules bind to drug targets.
To determine the structure of a protein, it must first be crystallized, which is no easy task. Often thousands of conditions must be tested before crystals form. These crystals are then soaked with the drug of interest. The samples are then bombarded with high-speed X-rays that give rise to unique diffraction patterns. Sophisticated computer algorithms then allow the three-dimensional protein structure to be solved, thereby revealing how the drug binds.
Ladbury and Poncet-Montange have solved more than 50 proprietary drug-bound structures to date.
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