Mie University

Toshiyuki Shibata

Hideo Miyake

Reiji Tanaka

Haruko Takeyama

Fumino Okuda

Tetsushi Mori

Mami Takahashi

Yoshihiro Murase

Mano Hasegawa

A method of treating a patient in need thereof includes administering a therapeutically effective amount of 4-deoxy-L-erythro-5-hexoseulose uronic acid (DEH) to serve or function as a nerve growth factor (NGF) activity promoter, preferably to treat and/or prevent a neurodegenerative disease, such as PolyQ disease, Parkinson's disease, Parkinson's syndrome, spinocerebellar degeneration, spastic paraplegia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies or corticobasal degeneration.

Methods of treatment and prevention using 4-deoxy-L-erythro-5-hexoseulose uronic acid

Alginate lyase activity is exhibited by the amino acid sequences (polypeptides) shown in SEQ ID No:1 and SEQ ID No:2. These polypeptides and their homology equivalents are used to produce 4-deoxy-L-erythro-5-hexoseulose uronic acid (DEH) by contacting the polypeptide(s) with an alginate containing a uronic acid moiety and holding the mixture of the alginate and the polypeptide(s) at a temperature at which alginate lyase activity is exhibited.

DNA sequence and expression vector for alginate lyase

Growing community of inventors

Tsu, Japan

Toshiyuki Shibata