Title: Attacking the Cancer Surfaceome
The cell surface proteome, the surfaceome, is a major hub for cellular communication and a primary source of drug targets, especially for biologics. Identifying how the surfaceome changes in cancer is a central challenge for identifying and targeting new disease associated proteins. We have used chemical methods and engineered proteins to facilitate identification of membrane proteins, both native and post-translationally modified versions, that change with oncogene transformation and or hypoxia a characteristic of the tumor micro-environment. We then target proteins either upregulated, proteolyzed or both with recombinant antibodies derived by phage display to be used as validation tools and potential therapeutic leads.