Nucleic acid ligands against infectious prions

• US 8,841,429 B2
• Filed: 11/03/2009
• Issued: 09/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/03/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Vivonics Inc.
• Original Assignee: Vivonics Inc.
• Inventors: Gilman, Vladimir Leo
• Primary Examiner(s): POHNERT, STEVEN C
• Application Number:
  US12/611,473
• Publication Number:
  US 20110104668A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,785 Days
• US Class Current: 536/23.1
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 38/00 Medicinal preparations containing peptides peptides containing beta-lactam rings A61K31/00; cyclic dipeptides not having in their molecule any other peptide link than those which form their ring, e.g. piperazine-2,5-diones, A61K31/00; ergot alkaloids of the cyclic peptide type A61K31/48; containing macromolecular compounds having statistically distributed amino acid units A61K31/74; medicinal preparations containing antigens or antibodies A61K39/00; medicinal preparations characterised by the non-active ingredients, e.g. peptides as drug carriers, A61K47/00
• CPC Class Codes: C07K 14/47 from mammals
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 15/115 Aptamers, i.e. nucleic acids binding a target molecule specifically and with high affinity without hybridising therewith ; Nucleic acids binding to non-nucleic acids, e.g. aptamers
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 2310/16 Aptamers
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/6816 characterised by the detection means C12Q1/6804 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/6883 for diseases caused by alterations of genetic material
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 2525/205 Aptamer
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2800/28 Neurological disorders
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/566 using specific carrier or receptor proteins as ligand binding reagents where possible specific carrier or receptor proteins are classified with their target compounds

Abstract

The invention generally relates to nucleic acid ligands that specifically bind to infectious prions, and methods of diagnosing a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy disease in a subject. In certain embodiments, the invention provides an isolated nucleic acid ligand that binds to an infectious prion. In other embodiments, the invention provides a method for diagnosing a transmissible spongiform encephalopathy disease in a subject including obtaining a tissue or body fluid sample from a subject, contacting the tissue or body fluid with a nucleic acid ligand that binds to an infectious prion, thereby detecting the infectious prion in the sample, and diagnosing the transmissible spongiform encephalopathy disease based on results of the contacting step.

Claims

1. An isolated nucleic acid ligand that binds to an infectious prion, wherein the nucleic acid ligand comprises the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO:

1 or the nucleotide sequence of SEQ ID NO;

2.

2. The nucleic acid ligand according to claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid ligand is single stranded.

3. The nucleic acid ligand according to claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid ligand is DNA.

4. The nucleic acid ligand according to claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid ligand is RNA.

5. The nucleic acid ligand according to claim 1, further comprising a detectable label.

6. The nucleic acid ligand according to claim 5, wherein the detectable label is a fluorescent label.