Benjamin Ebert

Benjamin Ebert made the landmark discovery that lenalidomide and pomalidomide function as molecular glue degraders by redirecting the cereblon E3 ubiquitin ligase to degrade the transcription factors IKZF1 and IKZF3, explaining the mechanism of action of these transformative multiple myeloma drugs decades after their clinical introduction. His subsequent work identifying CK1alpha as a cereblon neosubstrate degraded by lenalidomide explained its efficacy in myelodysplastic syndrome with del(5q). These discoveries catalyzed the entire molecular glue degrader field and opened new avenues for rational drug discovery.