Health. Metabolism. Transporters.

Metabolism is central to the well-functioning of cells and the human body, and imbalances in metabolism are associated with virtually all diseases.

Every biological process in the body depends on the availability of building blocks and energy, provided by the flow of nutrients between cells and across organs. Minuscule molecular gating machines, called solute carriers (or in short: SLCs), are transporters that mediate the movement of substances across membranes – the natural barriers in the cell and the body. As their name, carriers, suggests, these transporters grab nutrients like sugars, amino acids, and ions and move them across cell membranes. Like dancers, the choreography of their coordinated movements make life possible, and their balanced activity makes the difference between health and disease.

We aim to change the course of disease by improving the metabolism of specific cells in selected tissues. The most direct way to control the supply and demand for cellular nutrients is to influence the function of specific SLCs by interfering with their movements. The innovative technology platform of Solgate allows us to accelerate the discovery of new drugs against these transporters on a class-wide scale.