Searching for the Protein Targets of Bioactive Molecules

Abstract

The identification of all protein targets of a given drug or bioactive molecule within the human body is a prerequisite for an understanding of its beneficial and deleterious activities. Current approaches to reveal protein targets often fail to reveal physiologically relevant interactions. Here we review a recently introduced yeast-based approach for the identification of the binding partners of small molecules. We discuss the advantages and limitations of the approach using the clinically approved drug sulfasalazine as an example.

Keywords

• Sulfasalazine
• Target deconvolution
• Tetrahydrobiopterin
• Yeast three-hybrid screening