摘要 |
<p>The invention relates to a method for screening therapeutic agents for use in combating diseases associated with gene regulation by one or more Smad proteins and TGFβ or activin, said method comprising detecting or assaying the extent or result of transcriptional activity or binding in the presence of said agent between a Smad protein or a DNA binding fragment thereof and a double strand oligonucleotide comprising the sequence 5' WXYCAGACZ 3' or a functional equivalent thereof, wherein in said nucleotide sequence W represents A or G, X represents G or T, Y represents C, A, G or T and Z represents A or C. Also claimed are therapeutic agents identified by such a method and their use in combating diseases associated with abnormal expression of Smad-mediated TGFβ-induced genes.</p> |