Takeda Chemical Industries, Inc.

Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited

Yuichi Hikichi

Koji Yoshimura

Atsushi Nishimura

Takamasa Yamaguchi

Takeo Moriya

Ikuo Nogami

Hiroshi Miki

Kenichi Noguchi

Yumiko Moriya

The polypeptide of the present invention has an activity of binding specifically to the cis-element of Chondromodulin-I (ChM-I) gene promoter and promoting the transcription of the ChM-I gene. The polypeptide of the present invention is usable in screening for a compound that promotes or inhibits the activity of the polypeptide.

Transcription factor polypeptide that regulates Chondromodulin-I expression

The present invention relates to a novel protein belonging to an ADAM family, a partial peptide thereof or a salt thereof, a DNA encoding the protein, a recombinant vector comprising the DNA, a transformant, a method for producing the protein, a medicine comprising the protein or the DNA, an antibody against the protein, a method/kit for screening for a compound or a salt thereof which promotes or inhibits the protease activity or the extracellular metric degrading enzyme activity (preferably, the peptidoglycan degrading enzyme activity) of the protein, a compound obtained by the screening, and a medicine comprising the compound. The present protein and a DNA encoding it can be used, for example, as an agent for treating or preventing various diseases such as disc herniation, ischialgia, glomerular nephritis, diabetic nephropathy, hepatic fibrosis, pulmonary fibrosis or osteopetrosis. In addition, the present antibody can be used for quantitating the present protein in a test solution. Further, the present protein is useful as a reagent for screening for a compound which promotes or inhibits the protease activity of the present protein.

Protein and DNA thereof

Process for producing D-pantoic acid and D-pantothenic acid or salts

A method of producing D-pantothenic acid or a salt thereof characterized by bring a microbe belonging to the family Enterobacteriaceae having resistance to salicylic acid and capable of producing D-pantothenic acid in the presence of .beta.-alanine in contact with .beta.-alanine, preferably wherein a microbe resistant to .alpha.-ketoisovaleric acid and/or .alpha.-ketobutyric acid, and/or .alpha.-aminobutyric acid and/or .beta.-hydroxy-aspartic acid and/or O-methyl-threonine or a microbe transformed with a plasmid DNA carrying the region of a gene involved in biosynthesis of pantothenic acid or a salt thereof or a part thereof, is used, and a method of producing D-pantoic acid or a salt thereof characterized by culturing a microbe resistant to salicylic acid, .alpha.-ketoisovaleric acid and/or .alpha.-ketobutyric acid and/or .alpha.-aminobutyric acid and/or .beta.-hydroxy-aspartic acid and/or O-methyl-threonine and capable of producing D-pantoic acid to accumulate D-pantoic acid or a salt thereof, which is then harvested, and in accordance with these methods, D-pantothenic acid, D-pantoic acid or salts thereof can be efficiently directly obtained microbiologically without using DL-pantoic acid, DL-pantolactone etc. as starting materials.

Production of d-pantoic acid and d-pantothenic acid

Growing community of inventors

Tsukuba, Japan

Yuichi Hikichi