Two professors at the University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie have received a U.S. patent for an improved way to detect citrulline, the Universities of Wisconsin reported Oct. 14.
Biochemistry professor Jennifer Grant and chemistry professor Dmitry Kadnikov developed a chemical probe for citrulline, an amino acid that can signal autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis, as well as some neurological disorders and cancers.
Citrulline has been hard to study because the change that creates it adds only about the weight of a single hydrogen atom to a protein, and older probes were cumbersome and costly, according to the university.
Their patented method works in two steps: a small probe attaches to the citrulline, then a tag is added to make it easier to detect. The tag can be varied for different research needs, including imaging.
The pair applied for the patent in 2020, with support that included grants from WiSys and help from student researchers in their labs. They hope scientists elsewhere will use the method in disease research.
