Company to support Glasgow Uni Master’s student to aid drug discovery work
31 Jan 2023
Drug discovery and development company Ubiquigent Limited will support a Master’s student at the University of Glasgow to undertake a research project on deubiquitinase (DUB) modulator USP3’s potential in high need areas of medical therapies.
The subject of the research. USP30, is a DUB implicated in neurodegenerative, renal, and cardiovascular diseases.
USP30 is known to regulate the clearance of damaged mitochondria in the process mitophagy. Dysregulation of mitophagy is closely linked to the development of several diseases, with USP30 offering a potential treatment for conditions including Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Structural biologists, Glasgow University’s Professor Helen Walden and Principal Scientist at Ubiquigent, Dr Mehmet Gundogdu, will supervise the project with the studentship fully funded by Ubiquigent.
Professor Helen Walden stated: “There is huge potential to exploit USP30 as a therapeutic target across many indications, including cardiovascular, renal, and neurodegenerative diseases.
“My team has worked extensively on resolving the structures of both DUBs and E3 ligases, and I look forward to combining this experience with Ubiquigent’s drug discovery expertise to support the Master’s student and resolve the crystal structure of USP30 for the design of novel therapeutics.”
