A Riboproteomic Platform to Identify Novel Targets for Prostate Cancer Therapy

This study aims to take a new approach to studying this process at the level of the translating ribosome and its associated proteins (i.e. the riboproteome). While the conventional wisdom has been that ribosome composition is absolutely fixed, we have been pursuing a line of investigation showing that it is, in fact, flexible and dynamic. Moreover, it has become apparent that the deregulation of the ribosome is implicated in disease initiation and progression, and could serve as a potential target for therapeutic intervention. Our objective is to analyze the riboproteome in a high-throughput manner in order to gain a global snapshot of all proteins that constitute the riboproteome, to evaluate which of these proteins are altered between different prostate cancer cell lines and types, and to uncover how the riboproteome is altered during prostate cancer development and progression. In addition our studies aim to understand how the riboproteome responds to androgen signaling, and the use of PI3-kinase and MAP-kinase inhibitors, each of which are clinically relevant therapeutic options for prostate cancer patients.