397 results about "Vertebrate" patented technology

The present invention is directed to controlling pest infestation by inhibiting one or more biological functions in an invertebrate pest. The invention discloses methods and compositions for use in controlling pest infestation by feeding one or more different recombinant double stranded RNA molecules to the pest in order to achieve a reduction in pest infestation through suppression of gene expression. The invention is also directed to methods for making transgenic plants that express the double stranded RNA molecules, and to particular combinations of transgenic pesticidal agents for use in protecting plants from pest infestation.

Disclosed and claimed are methods of non-invasive genetic immunization in an animal and/or methods of inducing a systemic immune or therapeutic response in an animal, products therefrom and uses for the methods and products therefrom. The methods can include contacting skin of the animal with a vector in an amount effective to induce the systemic immune or therapeutic response in the animal. The vector can include and express an exogenous nucleic acid molecule encoding an epitope or gene product of interest. The systemic immune response can be to or from the epitope or gene product. The nucleic acid molecule can encode an epitope of interest and/or an antigen of interest and/or a nucleic acid molecule that stimulates and/or modulates an immunological response and/or stimulates and/or modulates expression, e.g., transcription and/or translation, such as transcription and/or translation of an endogenous and/or exogenous nucleic acid molecule; e.g., one or more of influenza hemagglutinin, influenza nuclear protein, influenza M2, tetanus toxin C-fragment, anthrax protective antigen, anthrax lethal factor, rabies glycoprotein, HBV surface antigen, HIV gp 120, HIV gp 160, human carcinoembryonic antigen, malaria CSP, malaria SSP, malaria MSP, malaria pfg, and mycobacterium tuberculosis HSP; and/or a therapeutic, an immunomodulatory gene, such as co-stimulatory gene and/or a cytokine gene. The immune response can be induced by the vector expressing the nucleic acid molecule in the animal's cells. The animal's cells can be epidermal cells. The immune response can be against a pathogen or a neoplasm. A prophylactic vaccine or a therapeutic vaccine or an immunological composition can include the vector. The animal can be a vertebrate, e.g., a mammal, such as human, a cow, a horse, a dog, a cat, a goat, a sheep or a pig; or fowl such as turkey, chicken or duck. The vector can be one or more of a viral vector, including viral coat, e.g., with some or all viral genes deleted therefrom, bacterial, protozoan, transposon, retrotransposon, and DNA vector, e.g., a recombinant vector; for instance, an adenovirus, such as an adenovirus defective in its E1 and/or E3 and/or E4 region(s). The method can encompass applying a delivery device including the vector to the skin of the animal, as well as such a method further including disposing the vector in and/or on the delivery device. The vector can have all viral genes deleted therefrom. The vector can induce a therapeutic and/or an anti-tumor effect in the animal, e.g., by expressing an oncogene, a tumor-suppressor gene, or a tumor-associated gene. Immunological products generated by the expression, e.g., antibodies, cells from the methods, and the expression products, are likewise useful in in vitro and ex vivo applications, and such immunological and expression products and cells and applications are disclosed and claimed. Methods for expressing a gene product in vivo and products therefor and therefrom including mucosal and/or intranasal administration of an adenovirus, advantageously an E1 and/or E3 and/or E4 defective or deleted adenovirus, such as a human adenovirus or canine adenovirus, are also disclosed and claimed.

The present invention relates to pharmaceutical compositions for the treatment and/or prophylaxis of disease associated with fibrosis in a vertebrate, said composition comprising at least one activin antagonist, and optionally a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, adjuvant and/or diluent. The invention also relates to methods of treatment of disease associated with fibrosis in a vertebrate, as well as methods for diagnosing such conditions, and kits therefor.

In certain aspects, the present invention provides compositions and methods for increasing red blood cell and/or hemoglobin levels in vertebrates, including rodents and primates, and particularly in humans.

In certain aspects, the present invention provides compositions and methods for increasing red blood cell and/or hemoglobin levels in vertebrates, including rodents and primates, and particularly in humans.

A method for estimating the skeletal status or bone quality of a vertebrate on the basis of two-dimensional image data comprising information relating to the trabecular structure of at least a part of a bone of the vertebrate, the image data being data obtained by exposing at least the part of the bone to electromagnetic radiation, such as X-rays, the method comprising subjecting the image data to a statistical analysis comprising a background correction procedure in which low frequency intensity variations not related to the trabecular structure of the bone are reduced relative to image data related to the trabecular structure of the part of the bone, a feature extraction procedure comprising (a) determining values reflecting the projected trabecular density in the image data, caused by the X-ray attenuating properties of cancellous bone in the part of the bone, for each of a number of locations or areas in the image data, (b) deriving one or more features from the variation of the determined PTD-values, preferably in the longitudinal direction of the bone, and an estimation procedure in which the skeletal status of the vertebrate is estimated on the basis of the one or more derived features and optionally other features related to the bone of the vertebrate and a predetermined relationship between the features and reference skeletal status parameters. Preferably, a profile describing the projected trabecullar density as a function of the distance along a line substantially at the center of the bone is determined, and information relating to skeletal status is derived from variations, fluctuations or other features of the profile.

In certain aspects, the present invention provides compositions and methods for increasing red blood cell and/or hemoglobin levels in vertebrates, including rodents and primates, and particularly in humans.

The present invention discloses and claims virus like particles (VLPs) that express and/or contains RSV proteins. The invention includes vector constructs comprising said proteins, cells comprising said constructs, formulations and vaccines comprising VLPs of the inventions. The invention also includes methods of making and administrating VLPs to vertebrates, including methods of inducing immunity to infections, including RSV.

A gene activation/inactivation and site-specific integration system has been developed for mammalian cells. The invention system is based on the recombination of transfected sequences by FLP, a recombinase derived from Saccharomyces. In several cell lines, FLP has been shown to rapidly and precisely recombine copies of its specific target sequence. For example, a chromosomally integrated, silent β-galactosidase reporter gene was activated for expression by FLP-mediated removal of intervening sequences to generate clones of marked cells. Alternatively, the reverse reaction can be used to target transfected DNA to specific chromosomal sites. These results demonstrate that FLP can be used, for example, to mosaically activate or inactivate transgenes for a variety of therapeutic purposes, as well as for analysis of vertebrate development. The FLP recombination system of the present invention can be incorporated in transgenic, non-human mammals to achieve site-specific integration of transgenes, to construct functional genes or to disrupt existing genes.

Methods for inducing systemic, non-specific and/or sequence specific immune responses in invertebrates, e.g., marine invertebrates such as mollusks, porifera, ctenophora, echinodermas, marine worms, cnideria and preferably crustaceans, by the administration of at least one dsRNA, that confers immunity against a pathogen, or modulates expression of gene that affects growth, reproduction, and general health or "robustness" are provided. Also provided are methods of identifying invertebrate genes, e.g., crustacean genes, the expression of which is involved in the induction of non-specific (systemic) immune responses against pathogens. Also disclosed are preferred delivery systems and methods for stably administering at least one dsRNA to a crustacean whereby the dsRNA is administered via injection, immersion, in a feed or nutrient medium or comprised in a microorganism, e.g., yeast or microalgae, that expresses said dsRNA and is ingestible by said crustacean, e.g., a shrimp.

The present invention is directed to raising a detectable immune response in a vertebrate by administering in vivo, into a tissue of the vertebrate, at least one polynucleotide comprising one or more regions of nucleic acid encoding a SARS-CoV protein or a fragment, a variant, or a derivative thereof. The present invention is further directed to raising a detectable immune response in a vertebrate by administering, in vivo, into a tissue of the vertebrate, at least one SARS-CoV protein or a fragment, a variant, or derivative thereof. The SARS-CoV protein can be, for example, in purified form. The polynucleotide is incorporated into the cells of the vertebrate in vivo, and an immunologically effective amount of an immunogenic epitope of a SARS-CoV polypeptide, fragment, variant, or derivative thereof is produced in vivo. The SARS-CoV protein is also administered in an immunologically effective amount.

The present invention relates to a method for treating nerve disorders in a mammal or a vertebrate by administering a TNF-alpha inhibitor. The invention also relates to the use of a TNF-alpha inhibitor in the preparation of pharmaceutical compositions for the treatment of nerve root injury and other nerve disorders.

The present invention relates to a vaccine for inducing an immune response to an antigen in a vertebrate (e.g., mammal) comprising an antigen and all or a portion of a stress protein or all or a portion of a protein having an amino acid sequence sufficiently homologous to the amino acid sequence of the stress protein to induce the immune response against the antigen. In a particular embodiment, the present invention relates to vaccines and compositions which induce a CTL response in a mammal comprising an antigen and all or a portion of a stress protein. In another embodiment, the invention relates to vaccines and compositions which induce an immune response to an influenza virus in a mammal comprising an antigen of the influenza virus and all or a portion of one or more stress proteins. The invention also relates to vaccines and compositions for inducing a CTL response to a tumor-associated antigen comprising a tumor-associated antigen and all or a portion of the stress protein. The invention also relates to vaccines and composition for suppressing allergic immune responses to allergens comprising an allergen and all or a portion of a stress protein.