Quantitative methods for the analysis of protein phosphorylation in drug development

Most signal transduction and cell signaling pathways are mediated by protein kinases. Protein kinases have emerged as important cellular regulatory proteins in many aspects of neoplasia. Protein kinase inhibitors offer the opportunity to target diseases such as cancer with chemotherapeutic agents specific for the causative molecular defect. In order to identify possible targets and assess kinase inhibitors, quantitative methods for analyzing protein phosphorylation have been developed. This review examines some of the current formats used for quantifying kinase function for drug development.