Detecting RORgt Citrullination

项目摘要 许多蛋白质在细胞中产生后被修饰。这种修改可能会严重影响 蛋白质的功能。一种这样的修饰是瓜氨酸化，它已被证明调节 免疫细胞，包括淋巴细胞和中性粒细胞。异常的瓜氨酸化与许多 人类疾病，包括感染和自身免疫性疾病。因此，操控蛋白质的瓜氨酸化可以 有益于许多临床环境；然而，我们对瓜氨酸化的了解仍然非常有限，主要是由于 缺乏检测瓜氨酸化的敏感和特异的工具。该项目的目标是开发一种 一种可以可靠地检测一种名为RORgt的蛋白质的瓜氨酸化的试剂，这种蛋白质对 淋巴细胞的分化/功能，并从原理上证明该试剂的价值 做实验。所产生的试剂将是未来研究调节作用的有力工具。 瓜氨酸在淋巴细胞功能中的作用，很可能会导致发现新的治疗靶点 人类疾病。

Project Summary Many proteins are modified after they are produced in cells. Such modification can critically influence the function of proteins. One such modification is citrullination, which has been shown to regulate the function of immune cells, including lymphocytes and neutrophils. Abnormal citrullination has been associated with many human diseases, including infection and autoimmune diseases. Thus, manipulating protein citrullination can be beneficial in many clinical settings; however, our knowledge of citrullination is still very limited mainly due to lack of sensitive and specific tool for detecting citrullination. The objectives of this project are to develop a reagent that can reliably detect the citrullination of a protein named RORgt, which is important for the differentiation/function of lymphocytes, and to demonstrate the value of this reagent in a proof-of-principle experiment. The reagent thus generated will be a powerful tool for future studies on the regulatory roles of citrullination in the function of lymphocytes and very likely will lead to discoveries of novel therapeutic targets of human diseases.