Project description
Novel anti-cancer targets
Small GTPases are proteins that switch between an inactive and an active state, triggering signalling cascades in cells. They are involved in many physiological processes such as vesicle trafficking but also in cancer, mediating pre-metastatic niche formation. The EU-funded RabTarget4Metastasis project is focussing on the development of inhibitors against the Rab27A GTPase hoping to effectively reduce and prevent cancer metastasis. Two regions in the protein will serve as the starting point for the development of selective inhibitors which will be tested for their ability to disrupt Rab27A activity in cancer cells. Evaluation of the therapeutic potential of the lead compounds that emerge from this work may open new avenues in cancer treatment.
Objective
Invasion and metastases remain to date the major causes of cancer mortality around the world. Rab27A is a small GTPase that regulates vesicles trafficking and is involved in many physiological processes, e.g. melanosome transport. Being a small GTPase, Rab27A acts as a molecular switch that cycles between an inactive state (GDP bound) and an active state (GTP bound), in which this protein is able to bind to specific effectors to trigger signalling cascades in cells. Current studies suggest a role for Rab27A in exosome-mediated pre-metastatic niche promotion. Hence, interfering with Rab27A PPIs could be effective in reducing and preventing the occurrence of metastasis in cancer. Small GTPases are renowned as challenging targets and have been long considered undruggable, but the unique presence of two non-conserved cysteines in Rab27A offers a perfect starting point for the development of selective covalent inhibitors. These residues are located in the proximity of a major interaction site with a known effector of Rab27A, Slp2, therefore encouraging for targeting PPIs. A screen of covalent fragments based on the recently developed quantitative Irreversible Tethering (qIT) assay has led to the discovery of novel hits with enhanced reactivity for Rab27A against glutathione. The current project aims to (i) obtain potent Rab27A covalent inhibitors by growing hit fragments, and (ii) demonstrate selective Rab27A target engagement in cells, and efficient disruption of the PPIs of Rab27A with its main effectors. Collaboration with the CRUK Beatson Institute will provide direct access to in vivo models to validate the contribution of Rab27A to metastatic development in cancer by use of such chemical probes, whilst state-of-the-art covalent fragment know-how will be accessed for compound optimisation at the Francis Crick Institute/GSK LinkLab, enabling prompt evaluation of the therapeutic potential of optimised lead compounds that will derive from my work.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- social sciences sociology demography mortality
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules proteins
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine oncology breast cancer
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2019
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
SW7 2AZ London
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.