Identifying the proteins to which small-molecule probes and drugs bind in cells

SE Ong, M Schenone, AA Margolin… - Proceedings of the …, 2009 - National Acad Sciences
SE Ong, M Schenone, AA Margolin, X Li, K Do, MK Doud, DR Mani, L Kuai, X Wang
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2009National Acad Sciences
Most small-molecule probes and drugs alter cell circuitry by interacting with 1 or more
proteins. A complete understanding of the interacting proteins and their associated protein
complexes, whether the compounds are discovered by cell-based phenotypic or target-
based screens, is extremely rare. Such a capability is expected to be highly illuminating—
providing strong clues to the mechanisms used by small-molecules to achieve their
recognized actions and suggesting potential unrecognized actions. We describe a powerful …
Most small-molecule probes and drugs alter cell circuitry by interacting with 1 or more proteins. A complete understanding of the interacting proteins and their associated protein complexes, whether the compounds are discovered by cell-based phenotypic or target-based screens, is extremely rare. Such a capability is expected to be highly illuminating—providing strong clues to the mechanisms used by small-molecules to achieve their recognized actions and suggesting potential unrecognized actions. We describe a powerful method combining quantitative proteomics (SILAC) with affinity enrichment to provide unbiased, robust and comprehensive identification of the proteins that bind to small-molecule probes and drugs. The method is scalable and general, requiring little optimization across different compound classes, and has already had a transformative effect on our studies of small-molecule probes. Here, we describe in full detail the application of the method to identify targets of kinase inhibitors and immunophilin binders.
National Acad Sciences