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Updated: Apr 12, 2026

Mimicking the Function of Signaling Proteins: Toward Artificial Signal Transduction Therapy
Published on: September 29, 2016
Protein-Protein Communication and Enzyme Activation Mediated by a Synthetic Chemical Transducer
Ronny Peri-Naor1, Tal Ilani1, Leila Motiei1
1†Departments of Organic Chemistry and ‡Structural Biology, The Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
Abstract:
The design and function of a synthetic "chemical transducer" that can generate an unnatural communication channel between two proteins is described. Specifically, we show how this transducer enables platelet-derived growth factor to trigger (in vitro) the catalytic activity of glutathione-s-transferase (GST), which is not its natural enzyme partner. GST activity can be further controlled by adding specific oligonucleotides that switch the enzymatic reaction on and off. We also demonstrate that a molecular machine, which can regulate the function of an enzyme, could be used to change the way a prodrug is activated in a "programmable" manner.
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