Using a Glycosyltransferase Activity Assay to Study Glycosylation and the Function of GTs

Glycosyltransferase Activity Assay and Lysosomal Storage Disorders
Glycosyltransferase (GT) enzymes are incredibly diverse in their abilities to catalyze the transfer of sugar molecules to protein, carbohydrate, and lipid substrates. GTs have various metabolic and regulatory roles in biology. Glycosyltransferase targets provide different areas of therapeutic potential in a wide array of disease, including cancer, metabolic disorders, and infectious disease. A glycosyltransferase activity
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Ubiquitin Ligase Assay: A Handy Tool for Drug Discovery

Ubiquitin Ligase Assay Tool for Drug Discovery
Can one cellular pathway contribute to many different types of disease? Research has shown that Ubiquitination is one such pathway due to its role in the regulation of protein degradation within homeostasis, cell cycle, and DNA repair. It has been established that at least the following diseases are among those affected from alterations in this
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Could an Inhibitor of Phosphodiesterase Activity be a Treatment for Alzheimer’s?

As we continue to increase our lifespan, diseases such as Alzheimer’s will subsequently persist to develop. With up to 4.5 million Americans currently affected, there’s a strong desire to find a cure or at the very least some relief from the symptoms.¹   Neurodegeneration derived memory loss is the most common and perhaps the most devastating result
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Immuno-Oncology Drug Discovery: A CD39 Activity Assay for a Promising Target

Cancer Cell T Cell CD39 Activity Assay
What comes to mind when you think of immunotherapy? The immune system, with all its complexities, contributes to numerous diseases that affect our society. It’s no wonder scientists scramble to find therapies that will either suppress (suppression immunotherapies) or activate (activation immunotherapies) an immune response. Immunotherapy isn’t only used for autoimmune diseases or infectious disease.
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NIH Awards BellBrook Labs Phase II Grant to Develop HTS Assays Targeting the cGAS-STING Pathway for Autoimmune Diseases and Cancer

Autoimmune Disease News
The National Institutes of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) recently awarded BellBrook Labs a $1 million phase II Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) grant to develop new assays to detect cyclic GMP-AMP (cGAMP) levels in biological samples. The assays will be used to discover, develop, and monitor new treatments for autoimmune diseases and cancer by targeting
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Enhancing Checkpoint Blockade Immunotherapy: Sensitizing Tumors with HSP90 Inhibitors

HSP90 Inhibitor Immunotherapy
Checkpoint blockade is turning heads in the oncology community. This form of immunotherapy, which uses anti-PD-1 or anti-CTLA-4 antibodies to coax the immune system into recognizing and attacking cancer cells, has been a game-changer — but only for some patients. Types of cancer for which checkpoint blockade currently cannot presently be used include gastrointestinal tumors
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EZH2 Methyltransferase Inhibitors Hold Promise for Combating Neuropathic Pain

When people experience neuropathic pain, they often describe “pins and needles” sensations or burning, shooting, or stabbing pain that can be agonizing and difficult to bear. In some cases, neuropathic pain is so intense that the pressure of clothing or the weight of a bed sheet can cause misery. Chronic neuropathic pain can be caused
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Sialyltransferases: Sugar Makes the Medicine Go Down?

Glycan structures decorate a wide variety of cell types—dotting the surface of blood cells, linked to lipid moieties on neurons, and studding the membrane of tumor cells. These carbohydrate structures create a cellular language that is translated by binding partners, eliciting specific downstream effects. And for some cancers, the effects can be devastating.   Consider
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BellBrook Labs Awarded NIH Grant to Develop a High Throughput cGAS Assay for Cancer and Autoimmune Disease Drug Discovery

BellBrook Labs was recently awarded a $288,000 SBIR Phase I grant from the National Institutes of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) to develop an HTS assay for cyclic GAMP synthase, an enzyme that triggers immune responses to viruses and tumors. The new assay will be used in an effort to screen for cGAS enzyme modulators as
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Ectonucleotidases: An Outside Chance for Drug Development

Sometimes, the most intriguing cellular processes happen outside of the cell. Case in point: purinergic signaling pathways, in which extracellular receptors sense levels of purines in the extracellular milieu. The result? A wide array of effects on neuronal signaling, vascular tone, thrombosis, and immune function. But what controls the level of extracellular purines? Enter ectonucleotidases:
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