Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 9, 2025

A Fluorogenic Peptide Cleavage Assay to Screen for Proteolytic Activity: Applications for coronavirus spike protein activation
Published on: January 9, 2019
Fluorescence-Based Peptidolytic Assay for High-Throughput Screening of MMP14 Inhibitors
Hyun Lee1,2, Lucas Ibrahimi1, Kyu-Yeon Han3
1Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
Abstract:
The membrane-bound matrix metalloproteinase 14 (MMP14, also known as MT1-MMP) plays important roles in the remodeling of the extracellular matrix during various cellular processes such as cancer metastasis, angiogenesis, and wound healing through its proteolytic activity. There are no known MMP14-specific inhibitors to date, and hence identification of MMP14-specific inhibitors will be beneficial for finding potential therapeutics for various diseases, including cancer and inflammation. High-throughput screening (HTS) assays have become a common way to search for new small compounds, peptides, and natural products. Enzymatic assays are highly amenable to HTS because most enzyme activities are quantifiable with the effect of many small molecules of interest on a specific target enzyme. Here, we describe a fluorescence-based enzymatic assay that can be applied as a large-scale HTS and a follow-up enzyme kinetics assay to find MMP14-specific inhibitors.
Insights
Researchers developed a fluorescence-based assay to identify specific inhibitors for matrix metalloproteinase 14 (MMP14). This assay is crucial for discovering new therapeutics targeting MMP14 in diseases like cancer and inflammation.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Molecular Biology
- Enzymology
Background:
- Matrix metalloproteinase 14 (MMP14) is vital for extracellular matrix remodeling in processes including cancer metastasis, angiogenesis, and wound healing.
- MMP14's proteolytic activity contributes to various pathological conditions.
- Currently, no specific inhibitors for MMP14 exist, hindering therapeutic development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a fluorescence-based enzymatic assay for high-throughput screening (HTS).
- To enable the identification of novel MMP14-specific inhibitors.
- To facilitate enzyme kinetics studies for potential therapeutic compounds.
Main Methods:
- Development of a fluorescence-based enzymatic assay.
- Application of the assay for large-scale high-throughput screening.
- Utilizing the assay for follow-up enzyme kinetics analysis.
Main Results:
- A robust fluorescence-based assay was established.
- The assay is suitable for identifying MMP14-specific inhibitors.
- The assay can be used for detailed enzyme kinetics studies.
Conclusions:
- The developed assay is a valuable tool for discovering MMP14-specific inhibitors.
- This discovery holds potential for developing new therapeutics for MMP14-related diseases.
- The assay supports both large-scale screening and in-depth kinetic analysis.

