HO-1 as a diagnostic and prognostic test for dementing diseases

Abstract

The invention relates to a commercial package for determining the concentration of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and/or a nucleotide sequence encoding HO-1 in tissue obtained from a patient, wherein the commercial package is used to predict the onset of, diagnose, or prognosticate a dementing disease. The tissue is suitably plasma, lymphocytes, cerebrospinal fluid or fibroblasts. The commercial package is useful where the dementing disease is any of Alzheimer's Disease, Age-Associated Cognitive Decline, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Vascular (i.e. multi-infarct) Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, Huntington's Disease, Down's syndrome, normal pressure hydrocephalus, corticobasal ganglionic degeneration, multisystem atrophy, head trauma, Creutzfeld-Jacob disease, viral encephalitis and hypothyroidism.

1 . A commercial package comprising; 
 means for determining the concentration of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and/or a nucleotide sequence encoding HO-1, in bodily fluid or non-neural tissue obtained from a patient; and    instructions for assessing a dementing disease in the patient;    wherein said commercial package is used to predict the onset of, diagnose, or prognosticate a dementing disease.    
     
     
         2 . A commercial package comprising; 
 means for determining the concentration of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and/or a nucleotide sequence encoding HO-1, in bodily fluid or non-neural tissue obtained from a patient; and    instructions for comparing said concentration with the corresponding concentration of HO-1 and/or an HO-1 encoding nucleotide sequence in corresponding bodily fluid or non-neural tissue obtained from at least one control person;    wherein a reduced concentration is used to predict the onset of, diagnose, or prognosticate an Alzheimer dementing disease; and wherein a concentration that is not reduced indicates that the dementing disease is not an Alzheimer dementing disease.    
     
     
         3 . The commercial package according to  claim 1  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 and the bodily fluid is selected from plasma and cerebrospinal fluid and the tissue is selected from lymphocytes and fibroblasts, or the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 encoding nucleotide sequence and the tissue is selected from lymphocytes and fibroblasts.  
     
     
         4 . The commercial package according to  claim 2  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 and the bodily fluid is selected from plasma and cerebrospinal fluid and the tissue is selected from lymphocytes and fibroblasts, or the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 encoding nucleotide sequence and the tissue is selected from lymphocytes and fibroblasts.  
     
     
         5 . A commercial package according to  claim 3  wherein the bodily fluid is plasma.  
     
     
         6 . A commercial package according to  claim 4  wherein the bodily fluid is plasma.  
     
     
         7 . The commercial package according to  claim 3  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 and the tissue is lymphocytes.  
     
     
         8 . The commercial package according to  claim 4  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 and the tissue is lymphocytes.  
     
     
         9 . The commercial package according to  claim 3  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 mRNA and the tissue is lymphocytes.  
     
     
         10 . The commercial package according to  claim 4  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 mRNA and the tissue is lymphocytes.  
     
     
         11 . The commercial package according to  claim 1  wherein the dementing disease is selected from the group consisting of Alzheimer's Disease, Age-Associated Cognitive Decline, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Vascular (i.e. multi-infarct) Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, Huntington's Disease, Down's syndrome, normal pressure hydrocephalus, corticobasal ganglionic degeneration, multisystem atrophy, head trauma, Creutzfeld-Jacob disease, viral encephalitis and hypothyroidism.  
     
     
         12 . The commercial package according to  claim 2  wherein the dementing disease is selected from the group consisting of Alzheimer's Disease, Age-Associated Cognitive Decline, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, Vascular (i.e. multi-infarct) Dementia, Lewy Body Dementia, Huntington's Disease, Down's syndrome, normal pressure hydrocephalus, corticobasal ganglionic degeneration, multisystem atrophy, head trauma, Creutzfeld-Jacob disease, viral encephalitis and hypothyroidism.  
     
     
         13 . The commercial package according to  claim 2  wherein the at least one control person is a normal age-matched person.  
     
     
         14 . The commercial package according to  claim 2  wherein the at least one control person is the patient from whom the corresponding concentration of HO-1 and/or an HO-1 encoding nucleotide sequence in bodily fluid and non-neural tissue was obtained at an earlier date, and the commercial package is used to prognosticate a dementing disease.  
     
     
         15 . A commercial package comprising means for determining the concentration of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and/or a nucleotide sequence encoding HO-1, in bodily fluid or tissue obtained from a patient, and instructions for comparing said concentration with an established standard of the corresponding concentration of HO-1 and/or an HO-1 encoding nucleotide sequence in corresponding bodily fluid or tissue obtained from at least one normal age-matched control person or from the patient at an earlier time.  
     
     
         16 . The commercial package according to  claim 15  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 and the bodily fluid is selected from plasma and cerebrospinal fluid and the tissue is selected from lymphocytes and fibroblasts, or the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 encoding nucleotide sequence and the tissue is selected from lymphocytes and fibroblasts.  
     
     
         17 . A commercial package according to  claim 16  wherein the bodily fluid is plasma.  
     
     
         18 . The commercial package according to  claim 16  wherein the means is for determining the concentration of HO-1 or HO-1 mRNA and the tissue is lymphocytes.  
     
     
         19 . The commercial package of  claim 15  wherein the corresponding bodily fluid or tissue is obtained from at least one normal age-matched control person.  
     
     
         20 . The commercial package of  claim 15  wherein the corresponding bodily fluid or tissue is obtained from the patient at an earlier time.