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Signal transduction as a drug-discovery platform

Nature Biotechnology volume 16, pages 1082–1083 (1998)Cite this article

Signal transduction is the term describing the process of conversion of external signals, such as hormones, growth factors, neurotransmitters, cytokines, and others, to a specific internal cellular response such as gene expression, cell division, or even cell suicide. This process begins at the cell membrane where an external stimulus initiates a cascade of enzymatic reactions inside the cell that typically includes phosphorylation of proteins as mediators of downstream processes. These most often wind up controlling an event in the cell nucleus. The checks and balances of these signal transduction pathways can be thought of as overlapping networks of interacting molecules that control "go–no go" control points. Since almost all known diseases exhibit dysfunctional aspects in these networks, there has been a great deal of enthusiasm for the prospect of identifying novel drug targets based on knowledge of key signal transduction components and their links to disease.

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Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Tom Jelinek at Upstate Biotechnology (Lake Placid, NY) for critical input regarding the development of the signal transduction field.

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  1. vice president for business development at Argonex Inc., 2044 India Road, Suite 202, Charlottesville , 22901, VA

    Aris Persidis

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  1. Aris Persidis
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Persidis, A. Signal transduction as a drug-discovery platform. Nat Biotechnol 16, 1082–1083 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/3553

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