Human cells have a sophisticated regulatory system at their disposal: labeling proteins with the small molecule ubiquitin. In a first, a team around the Rudolf Mößbauer Tenture Track Professor Kathrin Lang has succeeded in marking proteins with ubiquitin in a targeted manner, in test tubes as well as in living cells. The procedure opens the door to exploring the inner workings of this vital regulatory system.
Lang’s team uses two tricks to circumvent the complicated natural system: They incorporate a novel modified amino acid, at which the bacteria-derived enzyme sortase can attach ubiquitin or a ubiquitin-similar molecule.
A full press release can be found here.
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