Patent ID: 8017350

Claim:
A method for identification of a chemical compound that modulates the activity of a mammalian Glycosyl-Phosphatidyl-Inositol specific Phospholipase C (GPI-PLC) which comprises the steps of: a] incubating a mammalian cell with glimepiride to stimulate GPI-PLC activity; b] preparing hcDIGs (high cholesterol detergent-insoluble glycolipid enriched raft domains) from said mammalian cells whereby between 65%-85% of the GPI-PLC activity of the incubated cell of step a] is retained and whereby stimulation of the GPI-PLC activity in the cell of step a] by glimepiride is preserved in the GPI-PLC of hcDIGs and is about 3-fold higher as compared to the GPI-PLC activity present in the hcDIGs of a non-stimulated mammalian cell, and the GPI-PLC activity is enriched in the hcDIGs as compared to the residual plasma membrane; c] incubating the hcDIGs from step b] in the presence and absence of a test chemical compound; d] determining the activity of the GPI-PLC by measuring the cleavage of endogenous GPI proteins through monitoring their amphiphilic-to-hydrophilic conversion from the hcDIGs of step c].