Patent ID: 8034548

Claim:
A method of examining the physiological effect of a compound on a mammalian prostate cancer cell, comprising: (a) contacting said compound to be tested with said mammalian prostate cancer cell, wherein said mammalian prostate cancer cell has been selected as stably expressing an exogenous androgen receptor polynucleotide that encodes an androgen receptor protein or polypeptide or an androgen receptor protein or polypeptide variant, such that a total level of mRNA in the cell that encodes said androgen receptor protein or polypeptide or said androgen receptor protein or polypeptide variant, or a total protein or polypeptide level of said androgen receptor protein or polypeptide or said androgen receptor protein or polypeptide variant, is at least two-fold higher than the endogenous level of androgen receptor mRNA or protein or polypeptide in a hormone-sensitive prostate cancer cell, and wherein growth of said mammalian prostate cancer cell is hormone refractory, to provide a treated prostate cancer cell; (b) comparing one or more physiological characteristics of said treated prostate cancer cell with the same one or more characteristics of a control prostate cancer cell to which said compound has not been administered; and (c) determining from a difference in the one or more characteristics whether said compound has a physiological effect on the treated prostate cancer cell, decreases the biological function of androgen receptors, and/or inhibits the growth of hormone-refractory prostate cancer cells.