Methods of identifying patients having an altered immune status

US5658744A · kind A · utility

Assignees

• The United States of America, as represented by the Department of Health and Human Services · US
• Biomira USA Inc. · US

Inventors

• Augusto C. Ochoa · Windom, US
• Howard A. Young · Gaithersburg, US
• Dan L. Longo · Kensington, US
• Paritosh Ghosh · Frederick, US
• Richard J. Robb · Princeton Junction, US
• Mary E. Neville · Jamesburg, US

Key dates

• Filing date: Jul 22, 1994
• Grant date: Aug 19, 1997
• Expiry date: Jul 22, 2014

Classification

• Technology area (CPC Y): Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
• CPC primary: Y02A90/10
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

Methods of identifying a patient having an altered immune status involve determining an immune status index for the patient and comparing it to the immune status index in healthy individuals. In general, an immune status index is the ratio of the amount of a protein that varies significantly in a patient with an altered immune status to the amount of another protein that is substantially invariant in both healthy and immune-altered individuals. Variable proteins can be TCR subunit proteins, T lymphocyte signal transduction pathway proteins, polynucleotide binding proteins or biological response modifiers (BRM). In addition, the ratio of a TH-1-type BRM to a TH-2-type BRM, the ratio of cytoplasmic to nuclear levels of polynucleotide binding proteins, the pattern of protein binding to an oligonucleotide probe that comprises the protein binding region of a gene for a BRM, or the pattern of distribution of T lymphocytes in a density gradient following density gradient centrifugation are also suitable as an immune status index. The methods are useful in identifying patients exhibiting immunosuppression, hyperimmunity and autoimmunity, as well as in assessing the immune status of a patie…