How 'Undruggable' Enzymes Are Becoming Medicine's New Target

Summary

For years, scientists faced a frustrating roadblock with a group of crucial proteins called phosphatases. These enzymes act like molecular switches to control how our cells function, but they were historically considered undruggable because their physical makeup made it incredibly difficult to design medications that could effectively target them. However, that old assumption is quickly changing.

Recent scientific meetings have highlighted accelerating progress in the quest to build new drugs around these proteins. By teaming up, university researchers and pharmaceutical companies are finally figuring out how to translate the complex structure and signaling behavior of these enzymes into viable medical therapies.

Because this news comes from a broad review of a recent scientific conference rather than a specific clinical study, it is important to note that these findings represent early-stage momentum. Researchers are currently tracking widespread translational progress rather than reporting definitive efficacy metrics, sample sizes, or specific patient trial data.

Why it matters.

Unlocking phosphatases represents a massive shift in how the pharmaceutical industry approaches drug discovery. Because these enzymes influence so many different pathways in the human body, targeting them could lead to breakthrough treatments across a wide variety of medical fields. Specifically, researchers see expanding potential for these drugs in treating cancer, immune system conditions, neurological disorders, and cardiometabolic health.

While this research is still in its early phases and lacks specific patient outcome data, the overarching impact is significant. Turning a historically undruggable class of enzymes into a successful therapeutic target opens up a completely new frontier in modern medicine, offering future hope for patients dealing with complex diseases.

From the source

The story in numbers.

Days of workshop duration: 5
Year of the EMBO Workshop: 2025

Keep the context

Follow the evidence.

This AI-assisted summary is a starting point. Read the original reporting for its methods, scope, and limitations.

A $122M boost for a fast, inside-the-body approach to cell therapy

Create Medicines recently secured $122 million to advance a new class of treatments for cancer and autoimmune diseases. They specialize in CAR-T cell therapy, a treatment that engineers the immune system to fight disease. But instead of the traditional method of removing cells from a patient to alter them in a lab, Create Medicines is developing therapies that work entirely inside the body, a process known as "in vivo" treatment. To achieve this, the therapy uses tiny fat bubbles called lipid nanoparticles to deliver messenger RNA, or mRNA, into the patient. Think of mRNA as a set of biological instructions. Once delivered, these instructions directly teach the patient's existing immune cells, including T cells, natural killer cells, and myeloid cells, to reprogram themselves into disease fighters. The startup has already dosed more than 50 patients, giving it the largest clinical dataset in the in vivo field. They recently began an early-stage clinical trial for an experimental therapy designed to attack solid tumors that carry a specific protein called HER2. Alongside this cancer research, the company is testing other treatments that target proteins called CD19 and BCMA to help patients with autoimmune conditions.

BioPharma Dive1 min read

Supreme Court Protects Access to Common Abortion Pill

The United States Supreme Court has decided to preserve access to mifepristone, a medication used in the most common method of abortion. By rejecting recent restrictions proposed by lower courts, the Supreme Court has ensured that patients can still obtain this widely used drug while an ongoing lawsuit continues to make its way through the legal system. Under this current legal order, patients do not need an in-person visit with a doctor to get the medication. Instead, they are permitted to continue receiving mifepristone directly from pharmacies or through the mail. This ruling maintains the existing distribution methods, meaning that access is expected to remain uninterrupted at least into the following year as further legal proceedings unfold.

STAT News1 min read

Living Implants: Engineered Bacteria Trapped in Gel Fight Infections

What if a medical implant could sense an infection and fight it off automatically? Researchers have created exactly that with a new technology called an "implantable living material." To build it, scientists used a specialized, water-based gel known as a polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel. This material acts as a tiny, flexible fortress. It is uniquely stiff and tough, designed to hold genetically engineered bacteria safely inside for up to six months without them escaping into the surrounding tissue. Inside this protective gel, the researchers trapped a modified version of E. coli bacteria to act as molecular guards. These engineered microbes are programmed to detect chemical signals given off by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a dangerous pathogen that frequently causes infections around artificial joints. When the trapped bacteria sense the invader, they trigger a targeted self-destruct mechanism. This intentional cellular explosion releases a powerful antibacterial protein that easily passes through the microscopic pores of the gel to kill the infection outside. The research team tested this system in mice with artificial joint infections. Over a three-day treatment period, the living implant significantly reduced the amount of infectious bacteria compared to non-therapeutic controls. By keeping the helpful microbes physically contained while allowing their medicine to flow out, the researchers have found a clever way to turn living cells into localized drug factories.

GEN2 min read

Follow your curiosity.

How 'Undruggable' Enzymes Are Becoming Medicine's New Target

Summary

Why it matters.

The story in numbers.

Follow the evidence.

Your next discovery.

A $122M boost for a fast, inside-the-body approach to cell therapy

Supreme Court Protects Access to Common Abortion Pill

Living Implants: Engineered Bacteria Trapped in Gel Fight Infections

Summary

Why it matters.

The story in numbers.

Follow the evidence.

Your next discovery.

A $122M boost for a fast, inside-the-body approach to cell therapy

Supreme Court Protects Access to Common Abortion Pill

Living Implants: Engineered Bacteria Trapped in Gel Fight Infections

A little science goes a long way.