| abstract |
The present invention relates to a method of identifying drugs or agents which have immunosuppressive effects through or as a result of their effect on calcineurin, including drugs which affect the calcineurin Aα (CNAα) subunit or the calcineurin Aβ (CNAβ) subunit. In addition, the present invention relates to a method of identifying drugs which reduce (partially or totally) phosphorylation of the microtubule-associated protein tau, in the nervous system of a mammal; a method of identifying drugs which reduce (partially or totally) paired helical filament formation in the nervous system of a mammal; and a method of identifying drugs which reduce (partially or totally) formation of paired helical filaments, amyloid deposits or both. The present invention also relates to transgenic non-human mammals, such as rodents and particularly mice, which lack a functional calcineurin gene and, thus, have disrupted calcineurin expression. |