We have developed methods that allow us to test hundreds, and sometimes thousands, of proteins simultaneously. We call this set of new methods Functional Genomics and Proteomics because it provides functional data of potential medical use about large numbers of human proteins. The data resulting from our Functional Genomics and Proteomics effort is captured by an integrated Bioinformatics system. Our scientists can view the results of each experiment quickly and make decisions regarding potential medical applications, thus fueling our new product pipeline. We have initiated a new program to develop fully human antibody drugs.
Antibodies are molecular structures that the body produces naturally to fight infection.
They do this through recognition of structures on the outside of cells as well as those structures that have been secreted by cells and are in circulation throughout the body. Antibodies can bind to these proteins and inactivate them. When bound to the surface of a cell they can also serve as a target that marks the cell for destruction. We believe our set of signaling proteins comprises most of the potential human antibody targets, providing HGS with a fundamental strength in the exciting new area of antibody drugs. In addition, we have isolated and characterized an extensive set of bacterial antigens that can be used as targets to develop new antibody drugs.