US Patent:
20100247433, Sep 30, 2010
Inventors:
David Tirrell - Pasadena CA, US
Daniela C. Dieterich - Pasadena CA, US
Aaron J. Link - Austin TX, US
Erin Schuman - Pasadena CA, US
Assignee:
California Institute of Technology - Pasadena CA
International Classification:
A61K 51/04
A61K 49/00
A61K 31/655
A61K 31/4164
A61K 31/56
A61K 31/7076
A61K 31/445
A61K 38/46
G01N 33/53
US Classification:
424 165, 424 91, 514151, 514398, 514169, 514 46, 514328, 424 946, 435 71
Abstract:
The invention provides methods, reagents and systems to preferentially mark fast-proliferating cells/tissues (such as cancer), by incorporating non-natural amino acids into proteins, preferably in vivo, using the endogenous protein synthesis machinery of an organism. The incorporated non-natural amino acids contain reactive groups for further chemical reagents, which may serve as a “handle” to for a number of uses, such as imaging of cancer cells, targeting drugs to preferentially kill cancer cells, and proteomic analysis in the context of large scale or high throughput screening for candidate drug leads that affects the proliferation of a target cell, etc.