原始名称记载: The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York

The subject invention provides a method for treating a non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) disease in a subject afflicted therewith comprising administering to the subject a pharmaceutical composition comprising an amount of a compound which is a non-retinoid retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4) antagonist effective to treat the subject, thereby treating the subject. The subject invention provides a method for treating gout in a subject afflicted therewith comprising administering to the subject a pharmaceutical composition comprising an amount of a compound which is a retinol-binding protein 4 (RBP4) antagonist effective to treat the subject, thereby treating the subject.

Methods of treating subjects suffering from non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) by interfering with epidermal growth factor (EGFR) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) production and/or function in hepatic stellate cells.

Models and methods are provided for non-invasive diagnostic and predictive assessment of the systemic effects of metastasis in a human based on a tissue engineered immune system. Characterization of changes to bone marrow resulting from the presence and progression of a primary breast tumor including skewing of blood/immune cells at various phenotypes of cancer progression, and its use in assessing the metastatic state of a subject and/or the effects of candidate drugs thereon.