Carlos Moreno Yruela, who is currently a researcher at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, Switzerland, was selected in the ERC Starting Grants call to develop the CHEMTUBIO project at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC). The project will study the chemistry of enzymes that erase microtubule modifications. These enzymes are essential for the functioning of our cells and have shown great promise as potential therapeutic targets for treating cancer, heart disease and neurological disorders.
There is a little-known type of enzyme that is fundamental to the functioning of our cells: enzymes that ‘erase’ chemical modifications in proteins. These enzymes regulate essential cellular processes, and some are already being used as therapeutic targets for anti-cancer drugs. However, much remains unknown about multiple other erasers, partly because they are very difficult to analyse using conventional techniques.
The CHEMTUBIO project, led by Carlos Moreno Yruela at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), seeks to overcome this limitation by observing the activity of these enzymes directly on whole proteins rather than on artificial fragments, as is usually the case. This approach will facilitate the development of new drugs and allow the action of enzymes within living cells to be mapped.
The project focuses particularly on enzymes that act on tubulin, a protein that forms microtubules — a key component of the cell skeleton. These enzymes generate chemical patterns, and inhibiting their action is known to be a useful approach for treating cardiac and neuronal disorders. However, the mechanisms by which these enzymes act are still unknown due to a lack of adequate methods for studying them. Against this backdrop, the CHEMTUBIO project aims to develop in situ sensors and chemical probes to elucidate these processes and open up new avenues for therapy.
Additionally, Moreno and his team will develop pioneering techniques to study modifications that occur within microtubules. Understanding these mechanisms could lead to advances in the treatment of neuromuscular diseases and in the fight against cancer.
The ERC (European Research Council) Starting Grant is a prestigious award for talented young researchers in the early stages of their independent scientific careers. It funds innovative and ambitious research projects that address cutting-edge scientific questions. Recipients receive substantial funding to set up their own research groups and conduct high-level research for up to five years. The grant is awarded on the basis of scientific excellence and the originality of the proposed project, and competition for it is fierce at the European level.
