Targeted protein degradation is a new drug discovery strategy that eradicates problematic proteins from cells by hijacking cell degradation processes with small molecules. This field has opened up new possibilities to tackle diseases that had no cure, and to block proteins and processes that were considered impossible to treat with conventional drugs.
Alessio Ciulli, director of the Centre for Directed Protein Degradation at the University of Dundee and one of the leading representatives of this emerging field, was the protagonist of the first scientific event organized by the UB – Dr. Antoni Esteve i Subirana Chair in Pharmacology Research.
Ciulli held the conference Small-molecule protein degraders: current state and trends and future directions on December 5, 2024 at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Sciences of the University of Barcelona. After his presentation, the round table Targeted protein degradation and drug discovery was held, moderated by Carlos Plata, member of the monitoring committee of the UB Chair – Dr. Antoni Esteve i Subirana of Research in Pharmacology.
The round table also included the participation of Jordi Bach, principal investigator at Almirall; Carles Galdeano, Serra Hunter lecturer at the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Barcelona, and Mercè Pallàs, director of the UB – Dr. Antoni Esteve i Subirana Chair in Pharmacology.
KEYWORDS | Basic pharmacology, targeted protein degradation
