US 7,029,863 B2 · Cell culture system for determining the cholesterol efflux potential for serum

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cell culture system to provide a tool for assessing the potential of a patient's serum for preventing the accumulation of cholesterol in arteries (i.e. serum efflux potential) that leads to atherosclerosis and to screen new drug compositions being developed to reduce the accumulation of cholesterol or enhance the clearance of cholesterol from the vessel wall. The present invention combines two individual assays, which are two different cholesterol assays: an assay measuring scavenger receptor class B type I (SR-BI)-mediated cholesterol efflux and an assay measuring ATP binding cassette protein 1 (ABCA1)-mediated cholesterol efflux, and uses them in parallel to test human and animal sera for their potential to stimulate efflux, as mediated by either of the two receptors described above.

Claims13

Dependent claims

A method of assessing the ability of serum to mediate cell cholesterol efflux comprising the steps of:

a) exposing at least one first cell sample and at least one second cell sample to said serum;
b) assaying said first cell sample for contribution of scavenger-receptor class B type 1 (SR-BI) to serum mediated cholesterol efflux from said first cell sample;
c) assaying said second cell sample for contribution of ATP binding cassette protein I (ABCA1) to serum mediated cholesterol efflux from said second cell sample;
and
d) determining the ability of said serum to mediate cholesterol efflux from said first and second cell sample by measuring said contribution of SR-BI to cholesterol efflux and said contribution of ABCA1 to the cholesterol efflux.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Cell culture system for determining the cholesterol efflux potential for serum

Life of this patent

Cell culture system for determining the cholesterol efflux potential for serum

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims13