New Technique To Accelerate Drug Development

The search for new drugs is set to speed up thanks to a new research technique invented by scientists at Nanyang Technological University.

Asian Scientist (Jul. 25, 2013) – The search for new drugs, including those for cancer, is set to speed up thanks to a new research technique invented by scientists at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in Singapore.

Named the “Cellular Thermal Shift Assay” (CETSA), scientists can now know for sure if a drug had reached its target protein in the body, a critical step in determining the effectiveness of most medicines.

Presently, scientists can only use indirect evidence to guess if a drug has indeed reached its target protein. CETSA will help scientists take out much of the usual trial-and-error guesswork from the drug development process.

Most drugs operate by binding to one or more proteins, which ‘blocks’ the proteins’ function. Scientists around the world face two common bottlenecks: how to identify the right proteins to target and how to design drug molecules which are able to efficiently seek out and bind to these proteins.

The new technique, described in a paper published in Science, will not only ease the two bottlenecks, but also allows monitoring of a patient’s progress, for example, during cancer treatment.

“With CETSA, we can in principle determine which drug and treatment regime is most effective at targeting the proteins in the tumor in cancer patients, and monitor when resistance is developing,” said Professor Pär Nordlund, CETSA’s inventor.

“Other methods are available for indirect measurements of drug binding but they are often less accurate, and CETSA will be a valuable tool to complement these technologies.”

Professor Nordlund’s team is now in the process of developing a prototype device. They are also in talks with pharmaceutical companies who are interested to collaborate in research.

The article can be found at: Molina et al. (2013) Monitoring Drug Target Engagement In Cells And Tissues Using The Cellular Thermal Shift Assay.

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Source: NTU.
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