Patent ID: 7957909

Claim:
A method, for evaluating a biological condition of a target population of cells affected by an agent based on a sample from the population of cells, the sample providing a source of RNAs, the method comprising: using amplification to determine a quantitative measure of the amount of RNA of at least two constituents from any one of Tables 1 through 12 from the sample of the target population of cells, where a panel of constituents is selected so that measurement of the constituents enables measurement of the biological condition and wherein the measures of all constituents in the panel form a first profile data set; using amplification to determine a quantitative measure of the amount of RNA of all constituents in said panel wherein measures of all constituents in the panel are from a relevant population of target cells and form a normative baseline profile data set, wherein the measures for each constituent are performed under measurement conditions that are (i) within a degree of repeatability of better than ten percent and (ii) the efficiencies of amplification for all constituents differ by less than 10 percent; and producing a calibrated profile data set for said panel, wherein each member of the calibrated profile data set is a function of a corresponding member of the first profile data set and the corresponding member of a baseline profile data set; and wherein the calibrated profile data set provides a measure of the biological condition of the target population of cells as affected by the agent.