Scientists usually study cellular proteins by designing antibodies to bind with them, causing a disruption that provides insight into protein function.
This technique works fine for proteins found inside a cell or on its surface. Researchers are easily able to figure out their shape, which in turn determines the shape of the necessary antibody. However, the shapes of proteins embedded within cell membranes are largely unknown. As a result, they’ve remained an unapproachable cellular frontier -- until now.
Building on earlier research that analyzed DNA sequences to determine the composition of encoded proteins, their membrane location and their likely shape, University of Pennsylvania researchers made peptides stick to a pair of proteins called integrins that are involved in blood clotting.
The potential impact of this research, recently published in Science, goes far beyond the integrins. Some one-third of all our proteins are located in cell membranes. If the technique allows them to be studied, a new frontier could open inside us.
Penn scientists engineer small molecules to probe proteins deep inside cell membrane [press release]
*(Many thanks to Joanna
Slusky for explaining the mechanics of protein study!) *
Image: University of Pennsylvania
