Biosensors for small molecules can be used in applications that range from metabolic engineering to orthogonal control of transcription. Biosensors are produced based on a ligand-binding domain (LBD) using a method that, in principle, can be applied for any target molecule. The LBD is fused to either a fluorescent protein or a transcriptional activator and is destabilized by mutation such that the fusion accumulates only in cells containing the target ligand. The power of this method is illustrated by developing biosensors for digoxin and progesterone. Addition of ligand to cells expressing a biosensor activates transcription in yeast, mammalian cells and plants, with a dynamic range of up to about 100-fold or more. The biosensors are used to improve the biotransformation of pregnenolone to progesterone in yeast and to regulate CRISPR activity in mammalian cells. This work provides a general methodology to develop biosensors for a broad range of molecules.

The present invention provides a method for determining whether a patient will respond to treatment with a myostatin pathway inhibitor, the method comprising: (a) determining a level of myostatin and/or activin type II receptor (ActRII) and/or follistatin in at least one muscle biopsy obtained from a treatment target muscle in a subject having or suspected of having muscle atrophy or a muscle wasting condition; and (b) determining a level of myostatin and/or follistatin in a systemic sample obtained from the patient, wherein if: (i) the level of myostatin in the systemic sample is higher than a threshold and/or if the level of follistatin in the sample is lower than a threshold; and (ii) the level of myostatin and/or ActRII receptor in the at least one biopsy sample is higher than a threshold level and/or if the level of follistatin in the at least one biopsy sample is lower than a threshold level, the patient will respond to treatment.

The present invention provides a method for determining whether a patient will respond to treatment with a myostatin pathway inhibitor, the method comprising: (a) determining a level of myostatin and/or activin type II receptor (ActRII) and/or follistatin in at least one muscle biopsy obtained from a treatment target muscle in a subject having or suspected of having muscle atrophy or a muscle wasting condition; and (b) determining a level of myostatin and/or follistatin in a systemic sample obtained from the patient, wherein if: (i) the level of myostatin in the systemic sample is higher than a threshold and/or if the level of follistatin in the sample is lower than a threshold; and (ii) the level of myostatin and/or ActRII receptor in the at least one biopsy sample is higher than a threshold level and/or if the level of follistatin in the at least one biopsy sample is lower than a threshold level, the patient will respond to treatment.

The present invention relates to a method of providing an FAS finding (30) for the functionality of an anorexigenic signal path for a patient (1). Said method comprises the following steps: placing the patient (1) in a normalised preparation state in preparation for a normalised sample collection, providing a normalised sample matrix (10) collected from a patient (1) who was in the normalised preparation state, and determining at least one FAS indicator (11, 12, 13) from the normalised sample matrix (10), generating the FAS finding (30) based on the at least one determined FAS indicator (11, 12, 13).

The present invention relates to a method of providing an FAS finding (30) for the functionality of an anorexigenic signal path for a patient (1). Said method comprises the following steps: placing the patient (1) in a normalised preparation state in preparation for a normalised sample collection, providing a normalised sample matrix (10) collected from a patient (1) who was in the normalised preparation state, and determining at least one FAS indicator (11, 12, 13) from the normalised sample matrix (10), generating the FAS finding (30) based on the at least one determined FAS indicator (11, 12, 13).

Provided is, for example, a method for analyzing steroid hormones contained in a body hair sample from an animal, wherein body hair collected from an animal is used as the body hair sample, and the method includes: an extraction step of extracting a plurality of types of steroid hormones from the body hair sample by using a 45 vol % to 55 vol % aqueous acetonitrile solution containing 0.1 M trifluoroacetic acid; and a measurement step of measuring the amounts of the plurality of types of steroid hormones extracted.

Disclosed are methods, systems, and computer program products for using liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) for the analysis of endogenous biomarkers, such as 11-oxo androgens, in a sample. The 11-oxo androgens may comprise at least one of 11-hydroxyandrostendione (11OHA), 11-hydroxytestosterone (11OHT) or 11-ketotestosterone (11KT). More specifically, the methods, systems, and computer program products are described for detecting and quantifying the amount of an 11-oxo-androgen in a sample.

The present application is directed to the use of a VEGF-C inhibitor, a VEGFR-2 inhibitor and/or a VEGFR-3 inhibitor as a prophylactic or therapeutic for the treatment of eye disorders such as a maculopathy and pathogenic ocular neovascularisation. The application is also directed to the use of a VEGF-C measurement from a biological sample from a mammalian subject as a predictive marker, a selected marker, a responsive marker or a tracking marker for a disease or condition selected from the group consisting of a maculopathy and pathogenic ocular neovascularization.

The present application is directed to the use of a VEGF-C inhibitor, a VEGFR-2 inhibitor and/or a VEGFR-3 inhibitor as a prophylactic or therapeutic for the treatment of eye disorders such as a maculopathy and pathogenic ocular neovascularisation. The application is also directed to the use of a VEGF-C measurement from a biological sample from a mammalian subject as a predictive marker, a selected marker, a responsive marker or a tracking marker for a disease or condition selected from the group consisting of a maculopathy and pathogenic ocular neovascularization.

Provided is an application of a non-IGF1R-binding substance in the prevention and/or treatment of inflammatory diseases. Specifically, provided is use of a non-IGF1R-binding substance. The non-IGF1R-binding substance is used for preparing a composition or formulation, and the composition or formulation is used for preventing and/or treating inflammatory diseases.