New research model illuminates how organs communicate with each other Scripps Research, University of Southern California and collaborators uncover the proteins involved in key communication networks, which could help us better understand conditions like cancer and obesity.
August 17, 2022
LA JOLLA, CA Our many different organ systems are in constant communication with each other. During exercise, for example, muscles send out signals to fat and liver tissue to release their energy sources. While these communication networks play a critical role in our bodies every day, it has been historically difficult to uncover such pathways. Scientists at Scripps Research, University of Southern California and elsewhere have now successfully created a model to label and track the protein signals that enable organ-to-organ communication.
As the researchers described in Open Biology on August 10, 2022, their new mouse model marks the proteins that a cell secretes and tracks their movement throughout the body. This novel technology could shape our molecular understanding of healthy versus diseased tissue, as well as the role that inter-organ communication plays in disease onset and progression.
This new model can be likened to establishing a passport system in the body, as we are identifying where proteins are coming from and where they're going, says study co-first author Ilia Droujinine, PhD, Scripps fellow and principial investigator in the Department of Molecular Medicine at Scripps Research. We can finally bring these interconnected communications networks to light, and then develop treatments based on this new knowledge. Rui Yang and Amanda S. Meyer of the University of Southern California were also co-first authors and key contributors to this work.
Researchers have used other methods, such as viral approaches, to understand protein secretion and the ways that organs communicate with each other. While these techniques have provided invaluable insight into the proteins expressed in an organism, they aren't sensitive enough to label low-abundance proteins, or the origin and ultimate destination of protein interactions. But with this new model, scientists are now able to understand the exact path a particular protein takes.
In the study, the researchers used an enzyme called BirA*G3, which labels secreted proteins with a biotin tag. These biotin labels were then detected in live mice using a method called quantitative mass spectrometry proteomics, which is used to measure proteins in a sample. This revealed where the proteins originated from and where they traveled to in the body.
When BirA*G3 was broadly activated throughout the body, the researchers found that all secreted proteins were successfully labeled, even low-abundance proteins with hormone-like properties. Likewise, when BirA*G3 was activated solely in the liver, only secreted proteins related to that organ system were highlighted displaying the high specificity of the model as well.
Given the central role of key secreted proteins such as insulin, there is a great deal of interest in identifying novel secreted proteins, said Andrew McMahon, PhD, senior author of the study and chair of the Department of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine at the University of Southern California. Genome studies are suggesting that many new proteins remain to be characterized. We're looking forward to a deep dive into this area now that we have validated the technology.
There are countless research applications for this technology, Droujinine notes. With this type of model, scientists can start to map unexplored disease pathways and ultimately develop targeted treatments, as many diseases originate in a single organ and then eventually spread to others. Cancer, with its metastatic properties, is one example. For another, studies have shown that many of the health complications that arise from obesity could be due to faulty organ communication, yet many of the molecular mechanisms remain unknown.
Any protein we discover that plays a role in disease has the potential be translated into a therapeutic, adds Droujinine.
In addition to Droujinine and McMahon, authors of the study, A genetic model for in vivo proximity labelling of the mammalian secretome, include Rui Yang, Amanda S. Meyer, Jinjin Guo, Jill A. McMahon of the University of Southern California (USC); Namrata D. Udeshi, Dominique K. Carey, Charles Xu and Steven A. Carr of Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT; Yanhui Hu, David Rocco and Norbert Perrimon of Harvard Medical School; Qiao Fang of University of Toronto; Jihui Sha and James Wohlschlege of UCLA; Shishang Qin of Peking University; and Alice Y. Ting of Chan Zuckerberg Biohub.
This work was supported by a NIH Transformative R01 grant 5R01DK121409 to A.P.M., A.Y.T., S.A.C. and N.P., and HHMI funding to N.P. I.A.D. acknowledges support from the Ellen Browning Scripps Foundation.
Molecular and Cellular Biology Droujinine, Ilia
North America Stories
14/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
14/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
14/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
NHL Situation Room 2.0: How Sony Hawk-Eye Powers Centralized Officiating, Player...
13/01/2026
NBC Sports Ices the Audio for the 2026 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championship...
13/01/2026
DMF and MXL in practice: Which vendors are adopting it, and how fast is the ecos...
13/01/2026
CES 2026: Five Important Sports-Tech BuzzwordsThe terms highlight innovations for sports production at the showBy Daniel Frankel, SVG Contributor
Tuesday, Jan...
13/01/2026
For TGL Season 2, Unity 6 Boosts Virtual-Graphic Quality; COSM 360 Cameras Impro...
13/01/2026
Resetting Expectations? The State of the Sports Industry with Devoncroft's J...
13/01/2026
Top Row L-R: Ana Katz, Natalia Almada, Bao Nguyen, Tatiana Maslany, A.V. Rockwell, Dr. Heather Berlin
Second Row L-R: Sophie Barthes, Azazel Jacobs, Janicza Br...
13/01/2026
DoW to invest $1B in planned independently traded Missile Solutions business...
13/01/2026
L3Harris Chairman and CEO Christopher Kubasik and Under Secretary of War for Acq...
13/01/2026
Singapore - January 13, 2026 - Nielsen today announced the appointment of Matty Lin to its Commercial Organization as APAC regional sales leader.
Based in Sing...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Nine-week performance series brings music, dance, theatre, and storytelling to downtown Durham, January - March 2026 (Durham, NC) The Chamber Orchestra of the T...
13/01/2026
Berklee Launches AIMS, an Artist-Centered Summit on Music and AI Hosted by the Berklee Emerging Artistic Technology Lab (BEATL), the event will focus on the i...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
13/01/2026
NVIDIA and Lilly are putting together a blueprint for what is possible in the f...
13/01/2026
viztrick AiDi, Provided by Nippon TV and FOR-A, Powers Automatic 9:16 Cropping with Auto-Tracking and Intuitive Operation for Dynamic Streaming Content
Targ...
12/01/2026
Sports and Music Unite: A Look Back at the Operationally Ambitious FIFA Club Wor...
12/01/2026
Nielsen Panel Discussion Highlights World Cup Impact for FOX, Telemundo, MetLife...
12/01/2026
FIFA President Infantino Highlights How AI Will Impact 2026 FIFA World Cup and B...
12/01/2026
Baltimore Ravens' Jack Dana on Telling a Better Story With Media Management ...
12/01/2026
FOX Sports' Brad Cheney on Spectrum Debate's Impact on the Sports-Produc...
12/01/2026
Australia and New Zealand VP Alan Clements shares L3Harris' leadership insig...
12/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
12/01/2026
Berklee International Folk Festival Celebrates 40 Years Featuring Grammy-winning alumna Arooj Aftab, the milestone concert and weeklong festival marks four de...
12/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
12/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
12/01/2026
Back to All News
Kento Nakajima To Star in Netflix Manga Adaptation S&X', ...
12/01/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Celebrates Partnership and Progress at Fort Monmouth Closing Ceremony
Governor Phil Murphy, Netflix co-CEO, and Governor-elect Mikie ...
12/01/2026
Back to All News
WWE By the Numbers: Celebrating One Year on Netflix
From left to right: Rey Mysterio, Intercontinental Champion John Cena and Sheamus celebr...
10/01/2026
By Bailey Pennick
One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festi...
10/01/2026
Share Share by:
Copy link
Facebook
X
Whatsapp
Pinterest
Flipboard...
10/01/2026
Back to All News
Connection and Youth Defined: The Ramparts of Ice Brings a Hea...
09/01/2026
Rock-It Sports' Deron Brown & Laura Rowlands on Launching a New Brand, Suppl...
09/01/2026
Warner Bros. Discovery's Chris Brown on the Broadcaster's First French O...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: CBS Sports Travels to Jacksonville With Packed Arsenal of Pro...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: NBC Sports Is Set To Roll Out New Scorebar, Insert Graphics T...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: Prime Video Production Team Caps Historic Season With Iconic ...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: FOX Sports Kicks Off Postseason Slate With Two-Game Wild Card...
09/01/2026
NFL Playoffs 2026: ESPN's Run Brings Monday Night Football' Flagship Op...
New research model illuminates how organs communicate with each other Scripps Research, University of Southern California and collaborators uncover the proteins involved in key communication networks, which could help us better understand conditions like cancer and obesity.
