The process in which a cell converts an external stimulus (e.g. detection of a specific molecule via a surface receptor) into a specific responses is refered to as signal transduction. The molecular basis of signal transduction is very complex. Signal transduction is important in many different aspects of cellular activity, e.g. during photo synthesis, geotropism, epigenetics, embryogenesis, wound healing, infiltration, or diseases.

Signal transduction begins with a signal to a receptor and ends with a change in cellular function which is typically mediated via a cascade of second messenger signals within the cell. Each step of the cascade can result in signal amplification. Some messengers can also pass the cell membrane and directly change the statues of protein activity. The duration of these processes can taken between milliseconds and years. The complexity of an organism´s signal transduction processes tends to increase with the complexity of the organism itself.

The major challenge for researchers is to unravel the molecular basis of this complexity. caprotec´s Capture Compound Mass Spectrometry (CCMS) technology will help as a hypothesis-generating approach to get a better understanding of the involved processes through reduction of complexity by functional isolation of specific protein families.

Currently available caproKits™ allow the isolation of:

 

               • Staurosporine interacting protein kinases

               • Dasatinib interacting protein kinases

               • C8-cAMP-binding proteins

               • C2-cAMP-binding proteins

               • N⁶-cAMP-binding proteins

               • N²-cGMP-binding proteins

               • GDP- and GTP-binding proteins

 

Please feel free to contact us for any additional questions related to using caprotec products in signal transduction research!