The eukaryotic cytoskeleton is involved in a diverse number of cellular functions including cell motility, transmembrane signaling and cell shape and division. The role of the cytoskeleton in disease is equally pervasive. Oncogenic transformation, metastatic invasion, neurodegeneration and viral infections are just a few of the disorders that have now been linked to perturbed cytoskeletal function. Over the last decade, interest in this field has spawned the discovery old literally hundreds of novel proteins. Many of them are active areas of basic research and hold great potential as therapeutic drug targets. Clearly these proteins represent an invaluable resource to the scientific community however, in nearly all cases, they are not commercially available. As Cytoskeleton we have recognized the need to introduce these innovative products to academic and industrial researchers. We plan to adapt and improve previously published protein purification protocols in order to meet commercial needs. We arc confident that the availability of highly pure and biologically active proteins will result in enhanced progression towards understanding the mechanisms dictating normal and aberrant cytoskeletal behavior. As well as supplying these reagents, end to develop novel drug screens using stable formulations of our Phase l and Il proteins as potential targets.
The products developed in Phase II will be applicable to the research communities both in academia and industry. Cytoskeletal proteins will be useful in basic research to understand their functions in the cell and developed organism. Cytoskeletal proteins have uses in diagnostics such as tumor diagnosis and drug development such as creating a novel derivative of taxol for tumor therapy.
