Achievement

A recent publication in the journal Chemistry & Biology highlights the application of chemical genomics to aid understanding of protein trafficking within plant cells. Proteins are precisely transported through a variety of internal compartments before reaching their destination. Movement through these compartments is highly transient and some compartments themselves are dynamic. UCR ChemGen IGERT trainee Brown and others in the Raikhel lab, used small molecules to slow down or inhibit movements to learn more about the protein pathways. The compound Sortin1 disrupted vacuole morphology and inhibited accumulation of anthocyanins in the vacuole, possibly through inhibition of transporters. Another compound, Endosidin2, specifically inhibited endosomal recycling to the plasma membrane. Endosidin2 was combined with compounds that inhibit endocytosis, such as Endosidin1, to explore the downstream effects of slowing down or inhibiting proteins as they cycle through internal compartments.