The present invention provides biomarkers, methods and kits for diagnosing latent tuberculosis (TB) in a subject exposed to TB, and methods and kits for monitoring the effectiveness of treatment for latent TB.

This invention provides a device for screening a candidate substance for an active ingredient to prevent or treat declined kidney function etc. A screening device 1 for screening a candidate substance for an active ingredient to prevent or treat declined kidney function etc. comprises a first measurement value obtaining unit 11 for obtaining a measurement value of a kidney function prediction marker protein and/or a measurement value of mRNA of the protein in a test-substance-treated specimen, and a candidate substance determination unit 14 for determining that the test substance is a candidate substance for the active ingredient based on the measurement value(s) obtained by the first measurement value obtaining unit 11.

Disclosed are methods and systems for building a database of metabolite profiles correlated with disease states and treatment regiments, then defining an individual patient's metabolite profile, and then screening the patient's profile against the database to recommend potential effective treatment regimens.

Disclosed are systems for measuring the concentration of a disaccharide in an aqueous medium, the system comprising a boronic acid derivative and a fluorescent molecule. Also disclosed are methods of determining gastrointestinal permeability in a subject, the method comprising contacting an aqueous medium obtained from a subject with the above system to obtain a mixture, where the patient has consumed a known quantity of a disaccharide; measuring the fluorescence emission of the mixture; and correlating the extent of fluorescence emission to the concentration of the disaccharide in the aqueous medium; and correlating the concentration of the disaccharide in the aqueous medium to the gastrointestinal permeability in the subject. Also disclosed are methods of determining the concentration of a disaccharide in an aqueous medium, the method comprising contacting the aqueous medium comprising the disaccharide with the above system to obtain a mixture; measuring the fluorescence emission of the mixture; and correlating the extent of fluorescence emission to the concentration of the disaccharide in the aqueous medium.

An individualized intravenous exogenous insulin-based therapy for infusing insulin intravenously to a subject or a patient to improve impaired hepatic glucose processing. The therapy includes treatment sessions involving the assessment of metabolic factors, forming a subject profile, and matching the subject profile to a diabetic treatment model. Using the diabetic treatment model, a quantity and frequency of intravenous insulin bolus, dosage amounts of magnesium, and dosage amounts of potassium can be calculated. The methods that improve impaired hepatic glucose processing in subjects and patients can simultaneously introduce separated insulin bolus from an insulin reservoir, dosage amounts of magnesium, and dosage amounts of potassium. The subject profile can create a weight management protocol that uses a metabolic enhancement, wherein the individualized intravenous exogenous insulin-based therapy produces a subject or a patient with improved cellular ATP functioning.

This disclosure is directed to methods of methods of computing a composite measurement comprising employing two or more sub-instruments to measure one or more clinical symptoms of mitochondrial dysfunction or mitochondrial disease. This disclosure is also directed to methods of assessing and managing a subject with mitochondrial dysfunction or mitochondrial disease using a composite measurement.

Disclosed are biomarkers for Parkinson's disease (PD), including idiopathic PD (idPD). The present invention relates generally to assays, kits, compositions, solid supports and methods that measure a decrease in the expression or function of PLA2g6(L) variant of PLA2g6 (PARK 14) gene in a sample from the subject, including non-neuronal cells as a biomarker for preclinical (prodromal) or early stage Parkinson's disease (PD) and idiopathic PD (idPD), as well as assays, kits, compositions and methods that can detect the functional consequences of decreased expression of PLA2g6(L), including decreased store operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE), deficit of Ca2+ in endoplasmic reticulum stores, and autophagic dysfunction in the cells obtained from the subjects in preclinical (prodromal) and early stage PD diagnosis and for monitoring Parkinson's Disease progression.

The present invention provides a method for screening for an autophagy activator or inhibitor comprising the steps of: (a) making a test material to be analyzed come into contact with cells containing Beclin 1 protein; and (b) analyzing the degree of phosphorylation at the 30.sup.th serine amino acid residue of the Beclin 1 protein. The test material is determined to be an autophagy activator when the phosphorylation of the Beclin 1 protein is up-regulated, and the test material is determined to be an autophagy inhibitor when the phosphorylation of the Beclin 1 protein is down-regulated. The present invention first establishes, by ULK1, the mechanism of phosphorylation at the 30.sup.th serine amino acid residue of Beclin 1.

The invention relates to the C-terminal fragment of angiopoietin-related protein 4 [cAngptl4] as a diagnostic marker for viral and bacterial pneumonia; anti-angiopoietin-related protein 4 therapeutic antibodies, and the use of anti-angiopoietin-related protein 4 antibodies in the treatment of viral and bacterial pneumonia.

The invention provides assay methods of detecting plasma protease C1 inhibitor (C1-INH) that binds plasma kallikrein, Factor XII, or both, and uses thereof for identifying subjects at risk for or suffering from a pKal-mediated or bradykinin-mediated disorder. Provided methods permit analysis of patients with plasma kallikrein-mediated angioedema (KMA), or other diseases mediated by pKal useful in the evaluation and treatment.