Discovering novel allosteric probes of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors

This project aims at fostering novel approaches to selectively target vital receptors in the human body, the muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs). By harnessing novel concepts of receptor biology, including the design of receptor mutations, chemical and fluorescent studies, the project expects to develop novel biological and chemical tools for a family of receptors essential for the life of all vertebrates. The anticipated goal of this project is to enhance our fundamental knowledge and understanding of this family of receptor, ultimately, providing significant benefits to the research field by impacting on future drug discovery efforts, not just at mAChRs only, but also at other structurally related receptors.