BioCentury
ARTICLE | Tools & Techniques

Phenotypic screening on target

November 7, 2013 8:00 AM UTC

U.S. researchers have used forward genetics, a combination of phenotypic screening and genetics, to identify a therapeutic for leukemia and its target, the metabolic enzyme nicotinamide phosphoribosyl transferase.1 The platform plugs a gap in phenotypic screens that typically leave users guessing how their molecules work.

The strategy contrasts with the conventional approach to finding drug targets by biochemical methods or by selecting for mutations that affect drug response...