Bone morphogenic proteins (bmp),bmp receptors and bmp binding proteins and their use in the diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma

1 . A method for diagnosing glaucoma in a sample obtained from a cell or bodily fluid by detecting altered expression of a bone morphogenic family member gene, said method comprising the steps of:

g) obtaining a tissue or fluid sample from a patient suspected of having glaucoma;

h) extracting DNA from said sample;

i) obtaining a plurality of PCR primers, wherein said primers each comprise a sequence consisting of from 18 to 1547 contiguous nucleotides from SEQ ID NO:1, SEQ ID NO:3, SEQ ID NO:5, SEQ ID NO:7, SEQ ID NO:37, SEQ ID NO:39, SEQ ID NO:41, SEQ ID NO:43, SEQ ID NO:45, SEQ ID NO:47, or SEQ ID NO:53;

j) amplifying regions of the extracted DNA using said primers to obtain a PCR product;

k) resolving the PCR product; and

l) identifying differences between the sequence of the amplified extracted DNA and the sequence of the primer;

where a difference between the amplified sequence and the primer is diagnostic of glaucoma.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein said tissue or fluid sample is blood or buccal cells.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the primers comprise sequences consisting of from 20 to 100 contiguous nucleotides of SEQ ID NO:1, SEQ ID NO:3, SEQ ID NO:5, SEQ ID NO:7, SEQ ID NO:37, SEQ ID NO:39, SEQ ID NO:41, SEQ ID NO:43, SEQ ID NO:45, SEQ ID NO:47, or SEQ ID NO:53.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the primers comprise sequences consisting of from 20 to 50 contiguous nucleotides of SEQ ID NO:3.

5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the PCR product is resolved by SSCP, DGGE, ASO or RFLP.

6 . A method for treating glaucoma comprising administering to a patient in need thereof a composition comprising a sequence consisting of at least one compound selected from the group consisting of a BMP2 agonist, a BMP4 agonist, a BMP5 agonist, a BMP7 agonist, a Smad ⅕ agonist, a chordin antagonist, a gremlin antagonist and a follistatin antagonist.

7 . A method for identifying a therapeutic agent for the treatment of glaucoma, said method comprising:

d) obtaining a first composition comprising a population of recombinant cells expressing BMP-2A, BMP4, BMP-5, or BMP7;

e) obtaining a candidate substance;

f) incubating said composition and said candidate substance;

g) testing said composition for its ability to turn on BMP-induced Smad signaling pathways or BMP-regulated gene expression; and

h) identifying a candidate substance that inhibits, or stimulates, BMP-induced Smad signaling pathways or BMP-regulated gene expression.