Prostate-specific membrane antigen

Abstract

This invention provides an isolated mammalian nucleic acid molecule encoding a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen. This invention also provides prostate-specific membrane nucleic acid of at least 15 nucleotides capable of specifically hybridizing with a sequence of a nucleic acid molecule encoding a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen. This invention further provides vector and vector host expression system for the prostate-specific membrane antigen. This invention also provides methods to identify ligands which bind to the prostate-specific membrane antigen, to generate antibody against a complete prostate-specific membrane antigen or a portion of the antigen. This invention further provides purified prostate-specific membrane antigen. This invention provides a therapeutic agent comprising an antibody directed against to prostate-specific membrane antigen and a cytotoxic agent conjugated thereto. This invention also provides a method of imaging prostate cancer and an immunoassay for measuring the amount of the prostate-specific membrane antigen in a biological simple. This invention further provides transgenic nonhuman mammal which comprises the isolated nucleic acid molecule encoding a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen.

1 . An isolated mammalian nucleic acid molecule encoding a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen.  
     
     
         2 - 21 . (canceled)  
     
     
         22 . A method for determining whether a ligand can bind to a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen which comprises contacting a mammalian cell having an isolated DNA molecule encoding a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen with the ligand under conditions permitting binding of ligands to the mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen, and determining whether the ligand binds to a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen.  
     
     
         23 . (canceled)  
     
     
         24 . Purified mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen.  
     
     
         25 - 33 . (canceled)  
     
     
         34 . An antibody directed against the amino acid sequence of a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen.  
     
     
         35 . An antibody directed either to peptide Asp-Glu-Leu-Lys-Ala-Glu (SEQ ID No. 39), or Asn-Glu-Asp-Gly-Asn-Glu (SEQ ID No. 39), or Asn-Glu-Asp-Gly-Asn-Glu (SEQ ID No. 40) or Lys-Ser-Pro-Asp-Glu-Gly (SEQ ID No. 41) of the prostate-specific membrane antigen.  
     
     
         36 - 47 . (canceled)  
     
     
         48 . A transgenic nonhuman mammal whose genome comprises antisense DNA complementary to DNA encoding a mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen so placed as to be transcribed into antisense mRNA complementary to mRNA encoding the prostate-specific membrane antigen and which hybridizes to mRNA encoding the mammalian prostate-specific membrane antigen thereby reducing its translation.