The present invention relates to anti-IL-1 beta antibodies and in particular to monovalent high potency IL-1 beta-binding antibody fragments being highly stable. Such antibodies can be used in the treatment of inflammatory and other diseases as well as in diagnostics. Also provided are related nucleic acids, vectors, cells, and compositions.

The invention provides methods for treating pathological conditions associated with an undesirable inflammatory component. The invention is generally directed to reducing inflammation by administering cells that have one or more of the following effects in an injured subject: interact with splenocytes, preserve splenic mass, increase proliferation of CD4.sup.+ and CD8.sup.+ T-cells, increase IL-4 and IL-10, decrease IL-6 and IL-1, and increase M2:M1 macrophage ratio at the site of injury. The invention is also directed to drug discovery methods to screen for agents that modulate the ability of the cells to have these effects. The invention is also directed to cell banks that can be used to provide cells for administration to a subject, the banks comprising cells having desired potency for achieving these effects.

The purpose of the present invention is to provide: a biomarker for psychiatric and neurological disorders, in particular, a biomarker for diagnosing psychiatric and neurological disorders; and a test kit and test method for psychiatric and neurological disorders. The inventors discovered that there is a significant increase in the concentration of free immunoglobulin chains and free immunoglobulin chains in the blood samples from patients with psychiatric and neurological disorders. Consequently, the present invention provides a biomarker for psychiatric and neurological disorders that includes at least one selected from the group consisting of free immunoglobulin chains, free immunoglobulin chains, and fragments thereof. Using this biomarker for psychiatric and neurological disorders enables the psychiatric and neurological disorders to be easily tested and diagnosed with the blood samples from the subjects. The biomarker enables more effective tests and diagnoses to be conducted combining inflammatory cytokines in the blood of patients with psychiatric and neurological disorders.

Compositions and methods are disclosed herein for the treatment of aging frailty with bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells. The methods of treatment involve the administration of a composition of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells to a subject in need thereof, wherein the effectiveness of the treatment methods can be determined through the measurement of specific biomarkers and improved physical activity.

Diagnostic screening tests that can be used to identify if a patient is a good candidates for an implantable vagus nerve stimulation device. One or more analyte, such as a cytokine or inflammatory molecule, can be measured from a blood sample taken prior to implantation of a vagus nerve stimulator to determine the patient's responsiveness to VNS for treatment of an inflammatory disorder.

The invention relates to biocompatible, bioabsorbable derivatized non-crosslinked chitosan compositions optionally crosslinked to gelatin/collagen by 1-ethyl-3-[3-dimethylaminopropyl]carbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC) for biomedical use and methods of making and testing such compositions, including a modified acute systemic toxicity test. The compositions comprise derivatized chitosan reacetylated to a degree of N-deacetylation (DDA) of between about 15% and 40%. The compositions are typically bioabsorbed in about 90 days or less and can be made to bioabsorb at differing rates of speed. The compositions are initially soluble in aqueous solution below pH 6.5. The compositions have an acid content that can be adjusted between about 0% (w/w) and about 8% (w/w) to customize the composition for uses that require and/or tolerate differing levels of cytotoxicity, adhesion, composition cohesion, and cell infiltration into the composition.

A method of diagnosing Kawasaki disease in a mammal is provided. The method comprises determining in a biological sample obtained from the mammal the expression level of at least IL-1RA, and optionally the level of one or more of, IL-I, IL-18 and IL-18 BP, and diagnosing Kawasaki disease when the levels of these biomarkers is elevated in comparasion to febrile control levels.

A method for treating cystitis, in particular acute cystitis, comprising administering to a patient in need thereof, an effective amount of a reagent selected from the group consisting of IL-1 inhibitors and MMP inhibitors, or proteins selected from ASC or NLRP-3. Diagnostic methods are also described and claimed.

Fully human monoclonal Abs includes (i) an antigen-binding variable region that exhibits very high binding affinity for IL-1? and (ii) a constant region that is effective at both activating the complement system though C1q binding and binding to several different Fc receptors.

This invention concerns anti-inflammatory agents and methods for treating inflammatory disorders. Also disclosed are methods for identifying or evaluating anti-inflammatory agents or compositions.