The present invention discloses a preparation method of crytococcus neoformans capsular polysaccharide GXM as well as a GXM antigen immunoassay kit and an application thereof. The preparation method of the crytococcus neoformans capsular polysaccharide GXM effectively avoids the use of a toxic chemical reagent, ensures safety of operators, and also avoids environmental pollution, has high specificity, and can prepare a high-purity crytococcus neoformans capsular polysaccharide while simplifying a preparation process. The GXM antigen immunoassay kit adopts a competition method, has good sensitivity, specificity, repeatability and stability, has high recovery rate of a target compound and may provide more accurate and reliable inspection results. The kit is simple and feasible in use and operation, rapid and sensitive in detection and low in price and provides an effective tool for clinical detection of GXM.

A method is disclosed for determining the hypoglycemic potential of Momordica charantia (bitter melon) extracts through an in vitro test representative of the range of serum blood sugar typical of normal and diabetic subjects. The in vitro assay provides information on the functional activity of bitter melon extracts for regulating blood glucose uptake in an animal or human.

Assays used in conjunction with a thermal contrast reader are disclosed. In the assay, the test strip includes materials that can develop a thermal response if a target analyte is present in a sample. Linear flow assays include nanoparticles with high affinity binding to the analyte. Binding of the nanoparticles with an analyte in the sample is detected using thermal contrast. Analytes over a broad range of concentrations are detected in the linear flow assays. Methods of detecting target analytes and kits comprising lateral flow assays and thermal contrast reader are also disclosed.

The invention is directed to methods for identifying targets for antimicrobial and antiproliferative compounds as well as methods for identifying novel compounds for treating cancer and microbial infections.

The present disclosure relates to kits, compositions and methods for detecting fungal species, viruses and/or protein variants in a sample, e.g., a biological sample. For example, but not by way of limitation, the present disclosure provides living yeast biosensors that have been genetically engineered to detect fungal species, viruses and/or protein variants in a sample, e.g., a biological sample.

Methods for improving mitochondrial function, decreasing iron accumulation, and/or decreasing oxidative stress by exposing cells or treating a subject to compounds or compositions of the general formula

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are described that are beneficial in treating, for example, diseases and conditions such as Friedreich's ataxia, normal aging, and various neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Furthermore, such compounds are useful as probes for identifying defects in mitochondrial metabolism, mitochondrial iron accumulation, cellular stress among other mitochondrial diseases and helping to identify compounds active in overcoming such defects.

Methods for improving mitochondrial function, decreasing iron accumulation, and/or decreasing oxidative stress by exposing cells or treating a subject to compounds or compositions of the general formula ##STR00001##
are described that are beneficial in treating, for example, diseases and conditions such as Friedreich's ataxia, normal aging, and various neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. Furthermore, such compounds are useful as probes for identifying defects in mitochondrial metabolism, mitochondrial iron accumulation, cellular stress among other mitochondrial diseases and helping to identify compounds active in overcoming such defects.

The subject invention provides methods and means to detect incidents of accidental or intentional release of chemical and biological toxins into the environment by measuring cellular stress-induced proteins in eukaryotic cells exposed to environmental samples suspected of containing chemical or biological toxins using a highly sensitive on-chip surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS)-linked immunosensors assay allowing robust, fast, and reliable in-the-field global sensing of environmental threats in resource-limited settings.

The present invention relates to methods of identifying substances that modulate GA action through targeting its receptor or acting as a GA functional analog, sensor peptides especially designed for that methods as well as a strain of the species Saccharomyces cerevisiae expressing such a sensor peptide.

The present invention discloses novel mechanisms in the aging process and describes novel methods for high-throughput screening to identify, detect, and purify agents to be used for improving mitochondrial function, maintaining the cell cycle-arrested state in senescent and post mitotic cells, and thus preventing or treating age-related diseases or disorders associated with accelerated mitochondrial function loss, telomere dysfunction, and/or deterioration of the growth-arrested state. The present invention also discloses a number of compounds or compositions identified from this method. The present invention further provides the use of low doses of rapamycin or its analogs as a mimic of caloric restriction in preventing age-related diseases or disorders.