Preventives remedies for bone and joint diseases

A prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising a compound or its salt that inhibits the expression of a gene for a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof.

A prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising an antisense nucleotide having a base sequence which is complementary or substantially complementary to the base sequence of a polynucleotide encoding a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, or its partial peptide, or a part of the base sequence.

A prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising an antibody to a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof.

A diagnostic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising an antibody to a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof.

A diagnostic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising a polynucleotide encoding a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, or its partial peptide.

A prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising a compound or its salt having an action of inhibiting a sulfatase activity.

A prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising a compound or its salt having an action of inhibiting the expression of a sulfatase.

A method of screening a prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, which comprises using a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof.

A kit for screening a prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof.

A method of screening a prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, which comprises using a polynucleotide encoding a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, or its partial peptide.

A kit for screening a prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases, comprising a polynucleotide encoding a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, or its partial peptide.

(canceled)

A method of preventing/treating bone and joint diseases, which comprises administering to a mammal an effective dose of a compound or its salt that inhibits the activity of a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof, or an effective dose of a compound or its salt that inhibits the expression of a gene for the protein.

A method of preventing/treating bone and joint diseases, which comprises inhibiting the activity of a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof, or inhibiting the expression of a gene for the protein.

Use of a compound or its salt that inhibits the activity of a protein having an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO:

• 1, its partial peptide, or a salt thereof, or a compound or its salt that inhibits the expression of a gene for the protein, to manufacture a prophylactic/therapeutic agent for bone and joint diseases.