FWF - Funktionsselektive - Funktion-Selective Protein Scavenger Nanolayers

Aim of the work is to provide reliable and cheap glycosidase detecting systems for high-throughput as well as micro-array/chip applications for a wide range of diagnostic purposes in biochemistry, medicine and "functional proteomics". Selected REVERSIBLE glycosidase inhibitors carrying a fluorescent tag will be chemically synthesised, biologically evaluted, screened for applicability in various simple anylytical test systems and ultimately connected to a chip surface. Exposure to pure enzymes, mixtures or "general" biological matrices result in binding events which can directly be measured by fluorescence spectrometry analysis. From this, a "glycosidase atlas" will later be available to identify glycosidases by their unique, finger-print-like patterns of interaction with the chip-bound inhibitors. After clear "proof of concept", the method can be applied to special diagnostic purposes and problems. For example, "viral enzyme chips" (influenza, herpes, HIV), "hereditary metabolic disease chips" (brain metabolism, post translational glycoprotein processing) or "cancer-associated enzyme chips" can be envisaged to be based on this approach. Relying on the application of reversible inhibitors for detection, snap-shots for time-resolved studies/diagnostics will also be available. Furthermore, on the same basis, the chip may be used several times (as opposed to "one-way" devices), allowing for additional diagnostic options as well as "costcutting" in "low-budget" situations (poor income systems such as NGOs or under-developed countries and societies).