July 28/Ewing, N.J./PRNewswire-FirstCall -- Redpoint Bio Corporation announced the issuance of patent No. 7,749,730 B2 by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, entitled "High Throughput Screening Assay for the TRPm5 Ion Channel."

The patent covers methods of using a high-throughput screen to discover certain modulators of the TRPm5 ion channel. The TRPm5 ion channel is a member of a larger class of related TRP (Transient Receptor Potential) ion channels that are involved in the sensation of heat, cold and spicy compounds.  The TRPm5 ion channel was originally identified as an important component of taste signaling circuits responsible for sensing sweet, savory and bitter compounds on the tongue. Recently, an emerging body of scientific evidence has demonstrated that the TRPm5 channel is also found in the pancreas and gastrointestinal tract, suggesting a potential role in the regulation of metabolism and satiety. Specifically, TRPm5 may be involved in the secretion of important hormones like GLP1 and insulin that control sugar uptake and metabolism. Consequently, modulators of TRPm5 could potentially find application as a new therapy for adult-onset diabetes and obesity.

Diabetes is a chronic disease afflicting over 24 million Americans, and its poor control is the principle cause of blindness and kidney failure. Consequently, there is a continuing need for new and improved diabetes therapies, especially in an aging and increasingly obese population, which both correlate with an increased incidence of adult-onset diabetes.

"This patent is part of our expanding portfolio in the TRPm5 area and reflects our continuing interest in investigating TRPm5 modulators as novel therapeutics for diabetes," said Ray Salemme, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Redpoint Bio.

From the August 2, 2010, Prepared Foods E-dition