ADAMTS family zinc metalloproteases for treatment and investigation of metalloprotease related disorders including cancer and arthritis

摘要

ADAMTS (A disintegrin and metalloprotease domain - thrombospondin domain) family proteins ADAMTS 15 through 19 are new. ADAMTS (A disintegrin and metalloprotease domain - thrombospondin domain) family proteins ADAMTS 15 through 19 (I) are identified by devising primers for PCR amplification based on sequences of known ADAMTS family proteins; amplifying total RNA from human tissue using these primers; using the amplified fragments as probes to screen a human cDNA library; and isolating and sequencing cDNA fragments obtained from positive clones from the screening, to identify the genes (II) encoding ADAMTS 15-19. Independent claims are also included for (1) partial peptides of (I); (2) antibodies recognizing all or part of (I); (3) polynucleotides encoding all or part of (I); (4) expression vectors containing these polynucleotides; (5) hosts transformed by these expression vectors; (6) preparation of (I) or their partial peptides by culture of the transformed hosts; (7) immunochemical assay reagents containing antibodies recognizing all or part of (I); (8) immunochemical assay of (I) using these reagents; (9) kits for the assay method; (10) drug compositions containing (I) or their partial peptides, or antibodies recognizing them; (11) screening method for compounds promoting or inhibiting the activity of (I); and (12) kits for this screening method. ACTIVITY : Cytostatic; Antiarthritic; Analgesic; Antiinflammatory; Immunosuppressive. No biological data given. MECHANISM OF ACTION : Promotion and inhibition of adhesion and decomposition of extracellular proteins. No biological data given.