Claims
- 1. A method for aiding diagnosis of ALS disease, comprising detecting abnormal macrophages in a blood sample of an individual, wherein the detecting comprises detection of CD14+ cells with elevated HLA-DR expression or CD14+/CD16+ cells.
- 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises detection of CD14+ cells with elevated HLA-DR expression.
- 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the detecting comprises detection of CD14+/CD16+ cells.
- 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the blood sample is analyzed for the presence of abnormal macrophages within about 12 hours after the blood sample is collected.
- 5. A method of screening for an agent effective in decreasing the number of abnormal macrophages associated with ALS, comprising determining the difference in viability of CD14+ cells with elevated HLA-DR expression or CD14+/CD16+ cells in the presence and in the absence of a candidate agent, wherein the CD14+ cells with elevated HLA-DR expression or the CD14+/CD16+ cells are obtained from a blood sample from an individual with ALS.
- 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the viability of CD14+ cells with elevated HLA-DR expression is determined.
- 7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the viablilty of CD14+/CD16+ cells is determined.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the priority benefit of U.S. Provisional application 60/333,263, filed Nov. 16, 2001, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60333263 |
Nov 2001 |
US |