Patent ID: 6953670
Filing Date: 2005-10-11
Classification: A61K,A61P,C07K,C12N,C12Q,G01N

Abstract:
1. A method for identifying a compound capable of supplementing biological activity of leptin on cells expressing a leptin receptor variant, comprising: (a) incubating host cells with leptin to form a population of leptin-treated cells, wherein the host cells express a leptin-binding leptin receptor variant encoded by a polynucleotide selected from the group consisting of: wherein the leptin-binding leptin receptor variant does not produce competent signals upon leptin binding; wherein the stringent conditions recited in (ii), and (iii) comprise either: (b) incubating control host cells that do not express a leptin receptor with leptin; (c) incubating a portion of the cells of step (a) with a test compound; (d) incubating a portion of the cells of step (b) with a test compound; and (e) comparing activation signal in the leptin-treated cells of steps (a), (b), and (d) with that the activation signal of the cells of step (c), wherein a compound capable of supplementing a biological activity of leptin is identified if a higher activation signal is obtained for the cells of step (c) compared to the cells of steps (a), (b), and (d); thereby determining whether the compound supplements activation of the leptin receptor variant by leptin.