Search for drug discovery targets focusing on cancer stroma

Abstract

In recent years, it has become clear that the interstitial tissue structure varies markedly between the normal healthy state and various disease states. Focusing on differences in interstitial structure is expected to lead to the discovery of new targets for drugs. Considerable attention is currently focused on approaches that utilize organoids. The organoids retain the structure of the tissue, thereby facilitating identification of drugs that target interstitial tissues including neovascular vessels. Furthermore, protein expression analysis techniques have been developed that focus on the tissue structure based on an approach using chemical proteomics. In this mini-review, we will summarize the latest technological innovations aimed at identifying target molecules that are useful for the development of biopharmaceuticals, including antibody drugs.