Research
Technologies
Kinobeads™
Kinobeads™ is a kinase-binding matrix that can be used to measure quantatively the binding interaction of a compound with more than 300 different kinases at the same time. The resulting information can elucidate a compound's mode of action and therefore indicate which diseases it might be used against, or point to potential side effects.
Kinobeads™ can replace or complement the current established methods for screening and selectivity profiling of kinase inhibitors to over- come some of the challenges in kinase drug discovery.
IT Infrastructure
Our IT Infrastructure is tailored to facilitate Mass Spectrometry based proteomics experiments. Raw data collected by individual mass spectrometers are stored on a central file server with larger storage capacity and associated backup systems. Processing along a data pipeline involves e.g. peak processing, protein identification and quantification and is implemented on dedicated hardware including a four-node Mascot cluster. Computing resources that are not dedicated to such a permanently needed task are made available as virtual machines. Thus, processing power and memory can be balanced and made available where needed. Along the same lines, licensed software is installed on central virtual machines instead of private desktop computers.
Chemistry
A major part of our chemical research efforts are directed towards the design and synthesis of novel protein capturing tools and the optimization of protein kinase inhibitors. Modern synthetic and isolation strategies, combined with the latest analytical methods are at the core of any successful chemical work. In this regard, we have implemented a series of technical capabilities including:
- parallel synthesis
- photochemical cross-linking
- liquid chromatography (LC)
The chemistry unit has access to shared infrastructure in house as well as on campus; in particular a Bruker Ultraflex Extreme MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometer and a Bruker 500MHz NMR spectrometer.
Cell biology
The cell biology unit is focused on the preparation of biological samples under defined conditions for proteomic analyses, the development of functional assays to elucidate compound triggered responses in 2- or 3-dimensional in vitro models and the genetic engineering of mammalian cells to precisely monitor the modulation and/or interference of affected signal transduction pathways. For this purpose, we are essentially employing various cell culture systems (e.g., regular stationary or roller culture, large scale culture using a Braun Biostat B fermenter and on-chip culture providing single cell resolution). The cell culture facility is complemented by a molecular biology and a microbiology lab.
