Despite the exciting advances in human genetics over the past decade, the fraction of the human proteome targeted by small molecules remains relatively small compared to the total number of genes linked to a disease phenotype by Mendelian inheritance or genome-wide association studies. Chemical biology is a scientific discipline that promises to apply the latest chemical approaches to interrogate complex biological systems and is, consequently, at the very heart of modern pharmacology. This conference will explore how recent advances in chemical biology are helping to expand the druggable proteome and enhance our understanding of disease biology with three major themes:
- illuminating the druggable genome
- chemical interrogation of the druggable proteome
- new engineering approaches for breaking the druggability barrier
Co-organised with industry partners of the EMBL Corporate Partnership Programme, emphasis has been put on bringing together academic and industrial scientists with interests in chemical biology, chemogenomic libraries, pharmacology, medicinal chemistry and bioinformatics who have the curiosity and courage to challenge existing thinking and explore new ways of expanding the druggable proteome for better medicines.