Asking for (protein) directions

Improvement in proteomic technologies have resulted in increased interest in the identification of disease-related biomarkers and particularly in those that offer prognostic and diagnostic value.
| 1 min read
Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
1:00
UPPSALA, Sweden—Improvement in proteomic technologies have resulted in increased interest in the identification of disease-related biomarkers and particularly in those that offer prognostic and diagnostic value. The Human Protein Atlas (HPA) was one attempt to identify tissue-specific protein expression patterns that relied on screening of healthy and diseased tissue microarrays (TMAs) with an extensive panel of human protein-specific antibodies. In its present form, however, the atlas can only be searched in a gene/protein-specific manner.
 
Researchers at Uppsala University and Stockholm's Royal Institute of Technology recently addressed this limitation with a novel search algorithm.
 
As they described in Molecular and Cellular Proteomics, the researchers scanned stained TMA sections digitally and separated the data into individual spots that were then evaluated and annotated by pathologists for a variety of immunohistochemical parameters. The researchers stored the information regarding tissues, annotation, and the images themselves in a MySQL database.
 
They then generated new search functions that would allow users to query the database with more complex questions than whether a certain protein was expressed. For example, users could query the database for all proteins that were expressed in certain tissue types but NOT others, providing clues to potential biomarkers or even drug target candidates for specific conditions. In proof-of-concept queries, they were able to not only identify previously unknown proteins associated with given tissues or disease states, but also patterns of differential expression that could be linked back to the relative risk of disease progression.

About the Author

Related Topics

Loading Next Article...
Loading Next Article...
Subscribe to Newsletter

Subscribe to our eNewsletters

Stay connected with all of the latest from Drug Discovery News.

Subscribe

Sponsored

Image Alt Text	A laboratorian wearing blue gloves places a PCR sample into a real-time PCR thermocycler, the model shown is blue and white with a large digital screen.
From primer design to sample preparation, explore comprehensive strategies to optimize PCR throughput and reproducibility.
Tackling mycoplasma contamination in biotherapeutic production
DNA-based testing is emerging as a sensitive way to uncover and control a hidden threat in biomanufacturing.
Surface rendering of two interacting proteins (green and peach) bound together by a small molecule ligand at their interface, illustrating a protein-ligand binding event.
Learn how molecular dynamics, AI-aided design, and structural insights combine to reshape how therapeutic proteins are created, validated, and optimized.
Drug Discovery News June 2025 Issue
Latest IssueVolume 21 • Issue 2 • June 2025

June 2025

June 2025 Issue

Explore this issue