The Chemo-sero-therapeutic Research Institute

Kumamoto University

Tokushima University

Japan As Represented by Director-general of National Institute of Infectious Diseases

Ginkyo Academy Kumamoto Health Science University

Juridical Foundation the Chemo-sero-therapeutic Research Institute

Sachio Okuda

Yasushi Torii

Ryuji Kaji

Hirotoshi Nakano

Tetsuhiro Harakawa

Miho Shinmura

Yoshitaka Goto

Hiroaki Maeda

Masaki Hirashima

Takayoshi Hamamoto

Norio Akaike

Shintaro Kamei

Motohide Takahashi

Kazuo Takahama

Shinji Nakahira

Shunji Kozaki

Ryoko Wada

Setsuji Ishida

Megumi Imuta

Sachie Ogawa

Misako Umehashi

Asami Shindome

Takashi Sakamoto

Shunji Kosaki

Satomi Munechika

A method for treating a patient who has a neutralizing antibody to a type A1 botulinum toxin. The method includes administering 150 kDa type A neurotoxin from type A2(A2 NTX) to the patient. In accordance with the present invention, a problem can be solved of decrease in clinical response caused by a neutralizing antibody to a type A1 botulinum toxin produced when a patient is treated with a pharmaceutical preparation containing a type A1 botulinum toxin.

Type A2 botulinum toxin preparation

A novel type Atoxin preparation is provided. A neuromuscular transmission blocking agent comprising as an active ingredient a highly purified type Atoxin fromas infant botulism pathogen and a medicament for treating a disease with a muscle overactivity comprising as an active ingredient said toxin. In particular, the medicament of the present invention, as compared to the conventional knowntoxin preparations, has rapid efficacy of potential and is less diffusive and thus, having a broader safety margin, may be used as therapeutic medicament for decreasing local, muscle overactivity in a disease with a muscle overactivity.

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The present invention relates to a method for quantitatively measuring the muscular relaxing activity of a neurotoxin. Specifically, based on an extent of the activity of muscular relaxation of a neurotoxin from bacteria of, the present invention relates to a method for quantification of the efficacy (potential and/or diffusion reaction) of a neurotoxin comprising the following steps of: (a) administering a neurotoxin to the hind leg muscle of one of hind legs of a non-human mammal; (b) applying electric stimulus to said non-human mammal; (c) measuring a compound muscle action potential (CMAP) by contraction of said hind leg muscle to which the neurotoxin is administered and/or of the hind leg muscle of the other hind leg to which the neurotoxin is not administered; and (d) taking amplitude data from the compound muscle action potential (CMAP) obtained by the measurement in step (c) and analyzing an extent of a decrease in amplitude to thereby quantify the efficacy of the muscular relaxing activity by the neurotoxin. In contrast to the mouse LDcurrently used as a potential unit of a botulinum toxin which is measurable at a level of only several units, the quantification method of the efficacy of a neurotoxin of the present invention allows for measurement at a level of as low as 0.01 to 1 unit and hence is a method with a high sensitivity, reproducibility and accuracy.

Method for quantification of neurotoxin

The activated Factor XI is provided as an antitussive for cough caused by the stimulation at the tracheal bifurcation such as chronic cough. A pharmaceutical composition for prevention, treatment and/or symptom amelioration of cough, comprising a polypeptide chain as an active ingredient and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier, wherein the polypeptide chain consists of a full length amino acid sequence constituting activated Factor XI (hereinafter also referred to as 'FXIa'), the amino acid sequence with one or several amino acids therein being deleted, substituted or added, or a partial sequence of either of the above amino acid sequences, or an amino acid sequence comprising as a part any of the above amino acid sequences.

Plasma protein effective for suppressing cough

Growing community of inventors

Kumamoto, Japan

Sachio Okuda