Patent ID: 7078171
Filing Date: 2006-07-18
Classification: A61P,C12N,G01N

Abstract:
1. A method of identifying one or more candidate compounds having an effect on expression of a gene of interest, said method comprising: (a) identifying a 5′ or 3′ UTR sequence from a gene of interest; (b) selecting host cells which express the gene that is endogenously associated with the UTR; (c) stably transfecting one set of host cells with a test expression vector, said test vector comprising said 5′ or 3′ UTR sequence linked to, and positioned upstream or downstream, respectively, of a reporter gene construct (UTR/reporter), and stably transfecting another set of host cells with a control expression vector, said control vector comprising said reporter gene and lacking said UTR sequence (control/reporter); (d) identifying whether said UTR sequence has a post-transcriptional regulatory function by assessing whether a first mRNA function of the UTR/reporter transcript is changed compared to the control/reporter transcript; (e) determining whether the UTR regulatory function identified in step (d) is physiologically relevant by assessing whether said changed first mRNA function of the UTR/reporter transcript corresponds to the first mRNA function of the gene endogenously associated with the UTR; (f) contacting said compound with an mRNA molecule comprising said UTR sequence; and (g) measuring whether said compound alters a UTR-mediated effect.