Hanan Polansky has been awarded US Patent 7,381,526, “Assays for drug discovery based on microcompetition with a foreign polynucleotide.”
According to the patent’s abstract, a recent discovery showed that microcompetition between a foreign polynucleotide and a cellular polynucleotide is a risk factor for some of the major chronic diseases. The patent describes assays for screening compounds based on their effectiveness in modulating such microcompetition, according to the abstract. The patent also describes assays for screening compounds that can be used in the treatment of chronic diseases resulting from other foreign polynucleotide-type disruptions.
BioCrine has been awarded US Patent 7,381,523, “Methods for identifying compounds for treating diabetes mellitus.”
The inventor listed on the patent is Suad Efendic.
As stated in its abstract, the patent describes methods for identifying candidate beta cell-sensitizing compounds. The methods comprise providing a pancreatic beta islet cell population derived from a diabetic subject, contacting the beta islet cell population with one or more somatostatin receptor 5-binding compounds, and identifying those somatostatin receptor 5-binding compounds that promote insulin secretion from the pancreatic beta islet cell population at a higher rate than from a control cell population. The patent also describes methods for treating type 2 diabetes in which these beta cell-sensitizing compounds are administered to diabetic patients.
Millipore has been awarded US Patent 7,381,375, “Assay systems with adjustable fluid communication.”
The inventors listed on the patent are Ilya Ravkin and Oren Beske.
The patent describes systems, including an apparatus and methods, for performing assays with adjustable fluid communication between samples, according to its abstract.