I didn't know about this.
Robotnikinin takes on Sonic hedgehogSonic the hedgehog's nemesis strikes again, biologically speakingUS researchers have discovered a potential inhibitor of the Hedgehog signalling pathway which they have dubbed 'robotnikinin', in honour of Sonic the hedgehog's nemesis, Dr Robotnik.
Robotnikinin, a macrocycle, was discovered when a Harvard University team used a small-molecule microarray to screen for molecules that bind to Sonic hedgehog, the most prominent protein in the pathway.
Sonic hedgehog is essential to embryonic development and in adults plays a role in stem cell division and in some cancers.
The hedgehog pathway is being intensely studied, particularly the roles of a receptor called Patched and a transducer called Smoothened. Several early stage clinical trials are underway involving antagonists of Smoothened in basal cell carcinoma and pancreatic cancer.
The Harvard team, led by Dr Stuart Schreiber, decided to look for modulators that act before Smoothened in the hedgehog pathway. Using the small-molecule microarray, they found a new macrocyle that bound directly to the Sonic hedgehog protein.
They tested it on human skin cells and a synthetic skin model and found that robotnikinin inhibits Sonic hedgehog signalling in a concentration-dependent manner.
When the Smoothened agonists purmorphamine and SAG were co-administered, it reversed the inhibitory effect.
The researchers conclude that robotnikinin will be valuable as a probe of diseases associated with aberrant hedgehog signalling.
Study co-author Lee Peng, of Harvard Medical School, said the team had a little fun with the naming rights to the molecule. "As Sonic hedgehog was deliberately named after the Sega videogame character Sonic the hedgehog, we wished to adhere to the convention established by the original investigators in naming our inhibitor of Sonic hedgehog signalling," he said.
"Dr Robotnik is Sonic's archenemy, so we decided that 'robotnikin' was an appropriate name for our compound."
Their findings are reported online in advance of publication in Nature Chemical Biology.
Ha, that is totally AWESOME!!!!
Now that is incredibly awesome! For real. 
It's all so very silly. What's next... clinical diseases named after the cast of Final Fantasy?
Cloud's Disease - a neurological condition that causes those afflicted to assume someone else's life as their own.
Ha, that is totally AWESOME!!!!
My sentiments exactly.
Very nice - but I'm surprised that nobody here's commented that they should've called it "Eggman" yet. 
Very nice - but I'm surprised that nobody here's commented that they should've called it "Eggman" yet.
'Robotnikinin' has more of a ring to it than 'Eggmaninin', IMO.
I can just imagine the scientists having a real life flame war over the naming...only with actual flames (and beakers and test tubes and other stereotypical lab equipment)
Props to the scientists for keeping up with the 'theme.' And for the record, I also think Robotnikinin sounds better than Eggmaninin.
That is awesome.
It's good to see Sonic get represented, even in things that have nothing to do with him. XD
Aside...from...being...a hedgehog of course...
And to think, Robotnik the gene is more dangerous to someone than Ivo Robotnik. 
And so the war between Sonic and Robotnik continues on a genetic level.
LOL that pretty cool you know. I wonder if the name the next one after Metal Sonic?
We had this paper for Journal Club in my department! I was annoyed the presenter never included one single picture of Robotnik or Sonic! I simply pulled out my car and lab keychains ^_^ I love Science!
You'd be amazed at how we come up with names for stuff in research. About 2 weeks ago we were at a bar discussing Shh (Sonic hedgehog signaling molecule) and how people named it. One of the guys just discovered a protein that does something and yeah can't say what it does since it's not published yet. Anyhow he's naming it SMURF or SMURFY and he found he could use every letter to come up with a significant name! Small Molecule Ubiquitinating R-something F-something.
Hence, graduate students are the ones behind most of the cool names and acronyms. If we leave it to our advisors they would've named SHh something boring like UN, upregulator of neurogenesis...
