Method of screening for protein inhibitors and activators
AssigneeICT Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
InventorGerard Housey
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Abstract
Inhibitors and activators of a protein whose expression affects a phenotypic characteristic of the cell, especially a cultural or morphological characteristic, are identified by their more pronounced effect on cells producing higher, usually non-naturally occurring, levels of the protein, than on cells producing little or none of the protein. In a preferred assay, the effect is observable with the naked eye. By this method, tamoxifen is identified as an inhibitor of PKC activity in cell culture.
Claims16
A method of determining whether a substance is an inhibitor or an activator of a protein, which comprises:
- a) providing a test cell which overproduces a selected protein relative to a control cell which produces said protein at a lower level or essentially does not produce the protein, and wherein production of said protein in said test cell evokes a responsive change in a phenotypic characteristic, other than the level of said protein in said cell, per se, which is comparatively greater than in said control cell,
- b) treating said test cell containing the overproduced selected protein with said substance, and
- c) examining the treated test cell to determine whether it exhibits a change in said phenotypic characteristic in response to said substance.
A method of determining whether a substance is an inhibitor or an activator of a protein, which comprises:
- a) providing a first test cell which overproduces said protein relative to a control cell which produces said protein at a lower level or essentially does not produce the protein, and wherein production of said protein in said test cell exhibits a phenotypic characteristic other than the level of said protein in said cell, per se, in response to the protein which is comparatively greater than in said control cell;
- b) incubating the substance with the first test cell;
- c) comparing the phenotypic response of the first test cell in the presence of the substance with the phenotypic response of a second test cell in the absence of the substance.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.