Ligand profiling & drug discovery

We offer biophysical instrument access, training and collaborative services for discovery and biophysical characterization of ligands and small molecule drug lead candidates for proteins using SMALP technology and native nanodiscs.

Sets of polymer-based nanodiscs can be screened to test various biological lipid combinations that represent bar codes for subcellular organelles, and offer uniquely native-like membrane environments.

We offer collaborative rates, fee-for-service access, technical support, user orientation and training for our systems including:

• Visual Interference Color Assay (VICA) using a detector from Pavonis Diagnostics and Todd McMullen's lab at UAlberta for visualizing and quantifying protein interactions in pure samples or complex mixtures at low cost and without fluorescent or enzyme labels,
• GatorBio Biolayer Interferometry 8-channel & 96/384 well microplate system for ligand screening, profiling, affinities and kinetics of protein interactions with lipids and nanodiscs,
• Fluidic Analytics Fluidity One-M for affinity, size, stoichiometry information of nanodiscs and protein complexes
• Malvern Panalytical MicroCal PEAQ ITC for label-free binding kinetics and stoichiometries of lipid and drug molecules with protein targets
• Malvern Panalytical Zetasizer Ultra for measurement of nanodisc sizes, charges, concentrations and multiangle dynamic light scattering
• NMR spectrometers: Varian 600 and 500 MHz systems resolve proton, carbon-13, nitrogen-15, phosphorus-31 nuclei of proteins, small molecules, polymers, metabolites

Our systems represent the latest technologies for biomolecular analysis used to screen and cross validate lipid and drug molecule ligands, and quantify binding energetics, affinities, specificity profiles for membrane-associating proteins.

This internationally unique facility offers access to instruments at rates from CAD $15/hr for academics from any department, free trials for external users and subsidized rates for new and underfunded investigators looking to collect data for grant applications.

Molscreen was established by Michael Overduin and coapplicants with Canada Foundation for Innovation John R. Evans Leaders Fund grant 38496 entitled Biophysical equipment to measure complex molecular interactions in solution, which was co-funded by the Province of Alberta. This support should be acknowledged in user's publications, reports and presentations.

Our team welcomes opportunities for collaboration and partnering, and has experience in setting up, running and supporting drug discovery projects focused on a range of novel and established membrane-interacting protein targets inclusing kinases, phosphatases, GTPases and transmembrane receptors.

Molscreen's Gator+ BLI system