Publications by authors named "Eric S Okerberg"

Article Synopsis
  • Acyl phosphates, like ATPAc, are useful for studying how certain nucleotides bind to proteins by modifying specific lysine residues, which can happen even in proteins without previously identified binding sites.
  • The study shows that ATPAc specifically acylates the lysine at position 133 (K133) of procaspase-6 in Jurkat cells, influenced by interactions at the protein's dimer interface involving a conserved tyrosine residue (Y198).
  • A mutation (Y198A) that alters this interaction prevents acylation at K133 but does not affect the activity of the active form of caspase-6, suggesting that ATP could play a key role as an endogenous ligand at this previously un
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The interaction of a drug with its target is critical to achieve drug efficacy. In cases where cellular environment influences target engagement, differences between individuals and cell types present a challenge for prediction of drug efficacy. As such, characterization of environments conducive to achieving the desired pharmacologic outcome is warranted.

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We describe the identification of a novel, tumor-specific missense mutation in the active site of casein kinase 1α (CSNK1A1) using activity-based proteomics. Matched normal and tumor colon samples were analyzed using an ATP acyl phosphate probe in a kinase-targeted LC-MS2 platform. An anomaly in the active-site peptide from CSNK1A1 was observed in a tumor sample that was consistent with an altered catalytic aspartic acid.

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Here we describe a chemical proteomics strategy using ATP acyl phosphates to measure the formation of a protein:protein complex between p38α and mapkap kinases 2 and/or 3. Formation of the protein:protein complex results in a new probe labeling site on p38α that can be used to quantify the extent of interaction in cell lysates and the equilibrium binding constant for the interaction in vitro. We demonstrate through RNA interference that the labeling site is dependent on formation of the protein:protein complex in cells.

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Characterization and functional annotation of the large number of proteins predicted from genome sequencing projects poses a major scientific challenge. Whereas several proteomics techniques have been developed to quantify the abundance of proteins, these methods provide little information regarding protein function. Here, we present a gel-free platform that permits ultrasensitive, quantitative, and high-resolution analyses of protein activities in proteomes, including highly problematic samples such as undiluted plasma.

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