Patent ID: 7214503

Claim:
A method of treating congestive heart failure, said method comprising administering a compound that specifically activates cardiac myosin and increases contractility of cardiac sarcomere to a patient having or susceptible to congestive heart failure, wherein said compound is characterized by: a) adding a test compound to an in vitro mixture comprising a target protein complex that directly or indirectly produces ADP or phosphate under conditions which normally allow the production of ADP or phosphate, wherein said target protein complex comprises isolated myosin and isolated actin; b) subjecting the mixture to an enzymatic reaction that uses said ADP or phosphate as a substrate under conditions which normally allow the ADP or phosphate to be utilized; and c) determining the level of activity of the enzymatic reaction, wherein a change in said level between the presence and absence of said compound indicates that said test compound is a modulator of said target protein complex and further indicates that said test compound is suitable for use as said compound in treating congestive heart failure.