Provided are novel human copper-zinc superoxide dismutase, also known as superoxide dismutase 1 or SOD1, specific antibodies as well as fragments, derivatives and variants thereof as well as methods related thereto. Assays, kits, and solid supports related to antibodies specific for SOD1 are also disclosed. The antibody, immunoglobulin chain(s), as well as binding fragments, derivatives and variants thereof can be used in pharmaceutical and diagnostic compositions for SOD1 targeted immunotherapy and diagnosis, respectively.

The invention relates to fungal cells and spores, as well as extracts of either, for use, in particular, in prevention or treatment of Chlamydia, or Helicobacter pylori or other infections, inflammation, inflammatory, lysosomal, acidic, SOD- or IgG or other immunoglobulinperoxidases or hydrogen peroxide induced or other forms of oxidative damage, atherosclerosis, heart disease, stomach, intestinal and liver inflammatory conditions and their complications, promoting or stimulating regeneration or healing of wounds, burns, ulcers, or other forms of damaged or aged tissues, or in reducing elevated cholesterol and/or triglycerides levels In a preferred instance, the fungal cells or spores are those used in the manufacture of fungal fermented cheeses or other foodstuff or beverages, particular fungal blue or white cheeses.

The present invention provides biomarkers of oxidative stress in subjects with retinitis pigmentosa, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, Fuchs' dystrophy, diabetic macular edema (DME), geographic atrophy, Stargardt's disease, or retinal vein occlusion (RVO), and their use in identifying subjects in need of treatment and methods for staging the severity of the disease.

The invention relates to fungal cells and spores, as well as extracts of either, for use, in particular, in prevention or treatment of Chlamydia, or Helicobacter pylori or other infections, inflammation, inflammatory, lysosomal, acidic, SODor IgG or other immunoglobulinperoxidases or hydrogen peroxide induced or other forms of oxidative damage, atherosclerosis, heart disease, stomach, intestinal and liver inflammatory conditions and their complications, promoting or stimulating regeneration or healing of wounds, burns, ulcers, or other forms of damaged or aged tissues, or in reducing elevated cholesterol and/or triglycerides levels In a preferred instance, the fungal cells or spores are those used in the manufacture of fungal fermented cheeses or other food stuff or beverages, particular fungal blue or white cheeses.

The invention provides a method for treating a medical condition, disease, or disorder mediated by a misfolded form of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in a subject in need of treatment. The method optionally comprises administering to the subject a composition comprising a pharmaceutically acceptable vehicle and an agent selected from (1) an exogenous antibody or fragment thereof that binds selectively to the misfolded form of SOD, and/or (2) an immunogen that elicits production of an endogenous antibody that binds selectively to the misfolded form of SOD, and/or (3) a nucleic acid sequence encoding (1) or (2). In certain embodiments, the invention provides methods of treating diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis using amyotrophic disease-specific epitopes, and compositions including these epitopes. The invention also provides antibodies that bind to monomeric or misfolded SOD1, and not on the molecular surface of native homodimeric SOD1. In addition, the invention includes methods of diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in a subject. Also, the invention provides methods of identifying substances for the treatment or prevention of Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and kits using the binding proteins of the invention.

The present invention provides biomarkers of oxidative stress in subjects with retinitis pigmentosa, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, Fuchs' dystrophy, diabetic macular edema (DME), geographic atrophy, Stargardt's disease, or retinal vein occlusion (RVO), and their use in identifying subjects in need of treatment and methods for staging the severity of the disease.

The invention relates to an epitope protection assay for use in diagnosis, prognosis and therapeutic intervention in diseases, for example, involving polypeptide aggregation, such as prion infections. The methods of the invention first block accessible polypeptide target epitope with a blocking agent. After denaturation of the polypeptide, a detecting agent is used to detect protein with target epitope that was inaccessible during contact with the blocking agent. The invention also relates to novel amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-specific epitopes and their uses to make antibodies, and to the novel antibodies and uses thereof.

Cells within liver tumour mass comprise a unique set of proteins/tumour antigens when compared to the normal liver tissues epithelial cells juxtaposed to the tumour. The presence of tumour antigens couples the production of auto-antibodies against these tumour antigens. The present invention relates to the identification and elucidation of a protein set that can act as a novel marker set for liver cancer diagnosis and prognosis. Specifically, it relates to a kit that enables diagnostic and prognostic measurement of auto-antibodies in serum of liver cancer patients. The present invention provides a non-invasive, specific, sensitive, and cost effective detection and quantification method by evaluating a set of validated liver cancer proteins/tumour antigens, which includes Bmi-1, VCC1, SUMO-4, RhoA, TXN, ET-1, UBE2C, HDGF2, FGF21, LECT2, SOD1, STMN4, Midkine, IL-17A or IL26, to complement the conventional diagnostic methods.

A dry chemical test strip with multiple layers of membranes based on concentration gradient, comprising a substrate, an indicator layer, a reagent layer and a diffusion layer, further comprises a concentration gradient layer. Wherein a first reagent is uniformly applied on the reagent layer, a second reagent is applied on the concentration gradient layer. The concentration gradient increment of the second reagent is 0 in the width direction of the test strip, and is a constant or a function of the variable of length in the length direction of the test strip, a chromogenic reagent is uniformly applied on the indicator layer. The dry chemical test strip with multiple layers of membranes based on concentration gradient can allow all the testing and analysis procedures to be directly carried out on the test strip, test results to be directly obtained on the spot without the help of instruments.

The invention provides a method for treating a medical condition, disease, or disorder mediated by a misfolded form of superoxide dismutase (SOD) in a subject in need of treatment. The method optionally comprises administering to the subject a composition comprising a pharmaceutically acceptable vehicle and an agent selected from (1) an exogenous antibody or fragment thereof that binds selectively to the misfolded form of SOD, and/or (2) an immunogen that elicits production of an endogenous antibody that binds selectively to the misfolded form of SOD, and/or (3) a nucleic acid sequence encoding (1) or (2). In certain embodiments, the invention provides methods of treating diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis using amyotrophic disease-specific epitopes, and compositions including these epitopes. The invention also provides antibodies that bind to monomeric or misfolded SOD1, and not on the molecular surface of native homodimeric SOD1. In addition, the invention includes methods of diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in a subject. Also, the invention provides methods of identifying substances for the treatment or prevention of Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and kits using the binding proteins of the invention.