Novasite: Conceptually quick

Allosteric modulators, which modify ligand-induced receptor activity by binding at a site distinct from that of the native ligand, are attractive because their effect should be confined to tissues where the natural ligand and its receptor are present. They also should have more nuanced effects than classic agonists or antagonists. But allosteric modulation of G protein-coupled receptors has been difficult, due to the challenges of detecting the activity of such compounds in a screen.

Novasite Pharmaceuticals Inc. believes it has solved this problem via three core technologies. Its technology for receptor mutation profiling came from Applied Molecular Evolution Inc., which spun Novasite out in 2000. The technology provides a way of making mutations rapidly in target proteins. The company uses it to understand how compounds, including allosteric modulators, bind to GPCRs. ...