The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jan. 25, 2000
Filed:
Apr. 29, 1998
Susan Houck Hardin, Bellaire, TX (US);
Jun Ying, Houston, TX (US);
Leslie Burgan Jones, Houston, TX (US);
University of Houston, Houston, TX (US);
Abstract
Guanine-rich oligonucleotide primers and short telomeric DNA oligonucleotides that serve as non-conventional templates for the synthesis of long, nascent DNA strands are used to screen for pharmaceutical agents. Using the methods of the invention, agents exhibiting antagonistic or agonistic effects on guanine quartet formation can be selected for further study. The invention also provides a predictive assay for cancer in which the level of DNA polymerase activity at a quartet stabilized template is measured. The invention also contributes a method for screening pharmaceutical agents that reduce or inhibit DNA polymerase activity at guanine quartet stabilized templates. The invention provides a method of creating extended DNA molecules from oligonucleotide templates. The invention also provides a method of inhibiting the ageing process in which an oligonucleotide capable of forming non-Watson-Crick structures is used to promote the elongation of telomeres by DNA polymerase.