Patent ID: 7550424

Claim:
A method that is diagnostic or diagnostic and prognostic for a preneoplastic/neoplastic disease associated with abnormal MN/CA IX expression comprising contacting a mammalian sample with a potent MN/CA IX-specific inhibitor conjugated to a label or a visualizing means, and detecting or detecting and quantifying binding of said potent MN/CA IX-specific inhibitor to MN/CA IX on cells in said sample by detecting or detecting and quantifying said label or said visualizing means on cells in said sample, wherein said detection or said detection and quantitation at a level above that for a control sample is indicative of preneoplastic/neoplastic cells that overexpress MN/CA IX in said sample; wherein said inhibitor is selected from the group consisting of organic heterocyclic and aromatic sulfonamides, and wherein said inhibitor is determined to be a potent inhibitor of MN/CA IX enzymatic activity in a screening assay comprising determining the inhibition constant K I of said compound; wherein if said inhibition constant K I is determined to be less than about 50 nanomolar, said inhibitor is determined be a potent inhibitor of MN/CA IX enzymatic activity; and wherein said potent inhibitor is determined to be an MN/CA IX-specific inhibitor if it is a more potent inhibitor of MN/CA IX enzymatic activity than of the enzymatic activity of each of the carbonic anhydrases in the group consisting of CA I, CA I1 and CA IV.