Recent advances in the development and discovery of pharmacological interventions within
the ubiquitin–proteasome system (UPS) have uncovered an enormous potential for
possible novel treatments of neurodegenerative disease, cancer, immunological disorder and
microbial infection. Interference with proteasome activity, although initially considered
unlikely to be exploitable clinically, has already proved to be very effective against
haematological malignancies, and more specific derivatives that target subsets of
proteasomes are emerging. Recent small-molecule screens have revealed inhibitors against
ubiquitin-conjugating and -deconjugating enzymes, many of which have been evaluated for
their potential use as therapeutics, either as single agents or in synergy with other
drugs. Here, we discuss recent advances in the characterisation of novel UPS modulators
(in particular, inhibitors of ubiquitin-conjugating and -deconjugating enzymes) and how
they pave the way towards new therapeutic approaches for the treatment of proteotoxic
disease, cancer and microbial infection.