A COMPREHENSIVE DATABASE RESOURCE ON PROTEIN CATABOLISM

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This Phase II SBIR grant will enable the continued development of a unique and comprehensive research resource, the Protein Catabolism Database (PCDB), which will enable scientists to build upon a wealth of information to accelerate basic research and drug target identification. PCDB focuses on the field of protein catabolism, aberrations of which are implicated in cancer, neurodegeneration, inflammation, and immune disorders. During Phase I, a sophisticated classification system of proteolysis factors and substrates was devised, and a relational data structure created, complete with data input and retrieval interfaces. In Phase II, PCDB will be populated with comprehensive information on proteolysis pathways, and advanced interfaces for data mining and visualization will be created. The ultimate goal of PCDB is to provide academic and industrial investigators with carefully curated, up-to-date information on proteolysis, integrated with software tools to link specific knowledge to specific research problems. Completely unique applications will be developed, enabling targeting of pathogenic proteins through their proteolytic regulators, rational design of protein drugs with consideration of their in vivo half-lives. PCDB will also be novel in its ability to model drug effects on biological pathways, to differentiate complex biological states, and to accept user-generated curation. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The Protein Catabolism Database and its integrated software suite will have commercial application in industry and academia in the genome-wide prediction of proteolysis factors and substrates, tareting of proteins through proteolytic regulators, rational design of protein drugs with targeted in vivo half-lives, in silico modeling of pathogenic and drug-induced proteolytic pathways, and analysis of protein expression data elucidating pathogenesis and toxicology.