NSF Funds Montana Molecular
BOZEMAN, MT- Montana Molecular received a new notice of award for a Small Business Innovation Research grant from the National Science Foundation. According to Anne Marie Quinn, the Principal Investigator for the project and founder of the company, “This funding supports expansion of our fluorescent biosensor technology and will significantly extend our breakthrough innovations for drug discovery and cell signaling research.” In 2012, the company published a robust fluorescent biosensor that detects cell signaling messages within living cells. These signals are mediated by G-proteins and regulate a myriad activities within the cell including those that impact diabetes, cancer and neurologic disorders.
G-proteins are activated via seven transmembrane receptors known as GPCRs. GPCRs are important targets for drug discovery and also control sensory systems including taste, smell and vision. About 40% of drugs on the market act upon GPCRs. Many of these approved drugs could be effective treatments for other diseases.
The problem is that very little is known about what occurs within a cell when a drug activates a receptor. Cellular signals mediated by GPCRs occur in a complex coordinated process. Fluorescent biosensors are the key to understanding the timing and coordination of signaling processes within cells. These processes determine exactly how and why a drug works and what has gone wrong when it doesn’t work.
Montana Molecular is well on its way to producing a suite of robust biosensors that can simultaneously detect multiple components of cell signaling in a live cell assay. “New cell-based assays with the temporal resolution to capture multiple signals within living cells can show us when drugs activate a receptor in different ways, or even through different pathways,” added Quinn.
The grant is entitled “New Fluorescent Biosensors for Signaling in Living Cells“. This is the second time that NSF funds Montana Molecular. An earlier STTR project developed The Northern Lights Collection. The Northern Lights are a series of GFP-tagged cDNAs, now distributed internationally by Cell Biolabs.
For more information, contact amq@montanamolecular.com
