Background
Neuroinflammation is a key component of neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, Azheimer’s and Parkinson. The ubiquitin–proteasome system is a well-understood signaling pathway. Deubiquitinating enzymes or “DUBs” influence the system by removing the ubiquitin “tags” from substrates. Since their discovery, genetic and functional studies have nominated DUBs as a promising class for drug discovery across diverse therapeutic areas. Drug discovery efforts over the past 15 years have resulted in over 50 reported inhibitors and advances in DUB structural studies, assay formats, and chemical biology tools.
Tech outline
USP15, a member of the USP family of DUBs, is widely expressed in different tissues and regulates numerous cellular processes.
The USP15 de-ubiquitinase plays a central role in neuroinflammation by promoting the production of pro-inflammatory molecules by brain cells (microglia, astrocytes) in response inflammatory or tissue injury insults.
The team uses a proprietary drug discovery platform, to screen and identify novel small molecule inhibitors of ubiquitin-specific protease 15 (USP15). USP15 has been shown to regulate type 1 interferon and be key in the neuroinflammation pathogenesis. The team has established several collaborations for the development of USP15 inhibitors in neuroinflammation
USP15 Technologies