Linda M Curtis

US Patent:

6375925, Apr 23, 2002

Filed:

Nov 22, 1999

Appl. No.:

09/381594

Inventors:

Sotorios Tsimikas - San Diego CA
Joseph L. Witztum - San Diego CA
Wulf Palinski - San Diego CA
Linda K. Curtis - San Diego CA

Assignee:

The Regents of the University of California - Oakland CA

International Classification:

A61K 5100

US Classification:

424 149, 424 934

Abstract:

The invention provides reagents and methods for their use in in vivo diagnosis of atherosclerosis. In particular, the invention provides monoclonal antibodies which bind oxidation specific epitopes in atherosclerotic plaque lesions, such as those which occur in oxidized LDL, in vivo with high binding specificity; i. e. , at about 10 to 20 times the rate of binding of the antibodies to adjacent normal arterial tissue. When detectably labeled and administered according to the invention, the antibodies are clearly imaged when bound to atherosclerotic plaque using known imaging techniques and devices, such as a gamma camera. In addition, the invention provides a method for substantially reducing interference from background signal in the blood pool into which such agents are introduced for detection and quantification of atherosclerotic plaque burden in the cardiovascular tissue of a host.