Use of acamprosate to modulate ERK1/2 activation in animal models for FXS and ASD and individuals diagnosed with FXS and ASD
AssigneeIndiana University Research and Technology Corporation
InventorsCraig Erickson, Debomoy Lahiri
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Studies in mouse models of Fragile X and preliminary studies in human youth demonstrate that ERK1/2 is biomarker useful to monitoring the treatment of people diagnosed with ASD. Results reported herein demonstrate that acamprosate has the ability to reduce levels of ERK1/2 activation associated with many of the symptoms of ASD. Accordingly, in addition to its utility as a diagnostic marker for ASD ERK1/2 activation levels can be used to monitor patients treated with acamprosate and to screen potentially therapeutic compounds.
Claims7
A method of screening for a compound, comprising the steps of:
- contacting a first sample of plasma from a patient characterized as having autism spectrum disorder (ASD) under ADOS or exhibiting a lack of fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP) with a first reagent that selectively binds to activated ERK 1/2 and one or more reagents selected from the group consisting of:
- a reagent that selectively binds to BDNF, a reagent that selectively binds to sAPP, and a reagent that binds to sAPPα;
- determining the level of activated ERK 1/2 in the first sample of plasma;
- determining the level of at least one BDNF, sAPP, and sAPPα in the first sample of plasma;
- administering at least one compound to the patient;
- contacting a second sample of plasma from the patient with the first reagent that selectively binds to activated ERK 1/2 and the one or more of the reagents that selectively binds to BDNF, sAPP, and sAPPα;
- determining the level of activated ERK 1/2 in the second sample of plasma;
- determining the levels of at least one BDNF, sAPP, and sAPPα in the second sample of plasma;
- and
- selecting a compound if that compound causes a change in the level of activated ERK 1/2 determined in the second sample of plasma relative to the level of activated ERK1 or ERK2 determined in the first sample of plasma and causes a change in the level of at least one of BDNF, sAPP, and sAPPα in the second sample of plasma relative to the levels of at least one of BDNF, sAPP, and sAPPα in the first sample of plasma, wherein the compounds may be useful in the treatment of idiopathic or FXS-linked ASD.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.