Recent Happenings
OTD Launches Inventors Recognition Program
The Office of Technology Development (OTD) recently launched a new program to recognize NIAID inventors for their contributions to successful technology transfer at NIH. NIAID Patent Awards are triggered when the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office decides a NIAID patent application should mature from “patent pending” status to issuance as a U.S. patent. These technologies have withstood the patent application process and been found to be both novel and useful in the legal sense, a process that typically takes several years and many hours of effort by NIAID inventors.
In FY 2011, NIAID recognized the following individuals for their contributions to the U.S. patents listed below (only current NIAID employees are shown).
- United States patent US 7,947,289 was issued on May 24, 2011, for multimeric protein toxins to target cells having multiple identifying characteristics. NIAID inventors: Stephen H. Leppla, Ph.D.; Shihui Liu, M.D., Ph.D.
- United States patent US 7,932,074 was issued on Apr. 26, 2011, for multivalent human-bovine rotavirus vaccine. NIAID inventors: Albert Z. Kapikian, M.D.; Yasutaka Hoshino, D.V.M.
- United States patent US 7,914,788 was issued on Mar. 29, 2011, for monoclonal antibodies against orthopoxviruses. NIAID inventors: Bernard Moss, M.D., Ph.D.; Patricia Earl, Ph.D.; Robert Purcell, M.D.; Suzanne Emerson, Ph.D.; Zhao Chun Chen, Ph.D.
- United States patent US 7,910,105 was issued on Mar. 22, 2011, for methods for treating and preventing fibrosis. NIAID inventor: Thomas Wynn, Ph.D.
- United States patent US 7,820,181 was issued on Oct. 26, 2010, for recovery of recombinant human parainfluenza virus type 2 (HPIV2) from cDNA and use of recombinant HPIV2 in immunogenic compositions and as vectors to elicit immune responses against PIV and other human pathogens. NIAID inventors: Brian Murphy, M.D. (retired); Peter Collins, Ph.D.
- United States patent US 7,820,182 was issued on Oct. 26, 2010, for production of attenuated, human-bovine chimeric respiratory syncytial viruses for use in immunogenic compositions. NIAID inventors: Brian Murphy, M.D. (retired); Peter Collins, Ph.D.; Stephen Whitehead, Ph.D.; Ursula Buchholz, D.V.M., Ph.D.
Recent Patents
United States patent US 8,268,323 was issued on Sept. 18, 2012, for conformationally stabilized HIV envelope immunogens. NIAID inventors: Peter Kwong, Ph.D.; John Mascola, M.D.; Gary Nabel, M.D., Ph.D.; Barna Dey, Ph.D.; Chin-Chin Huang, Ph.D.; Tongqing Zhou, Ph.D.; Ling Xu
United States patent US 8,252,550 was issued on Aug. 28, 2012, for targeting poly-.gamma.-glutamic acid to treat Staphylococcus epidermidis and related infections. NIAID inventors: Michael Otto,Ph.D.; Frank DeLeo, Ph.D.; Elizabeth Fischer
United States patent US 8,247,228 was issued on Aug. 21, 2012, for a method of inducing memory B-cell development and terminal differentiation. NIAID inventor: Herbert Morse III, M.D.
United States patent US 8,216,788 was issued on July 10, 2012, for detection of infectious prion protein by seeded conversion of recombinant prion protein. NIAID inventors: Byron Caughey, Ph.D.; Roger Moore, Ph.D.
United States patent US 8,211,445 was issued on July 3, 2012, for PSM peptides as vaccine targets against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus. NIAID inventor: Michael Otto, Ph.D.
United States patent US 8,198,042 was issued on June 12, 2012, for CC chemokine receptor 5 DNA, new animal models and therapeutic agents for HIV infection. NIAID inventor: Philip Murphy, M.D.
United States patent US 8,173,123 was issued on May 8, 2012, for methods of treating colitis involving IL-13 and NK-T cells. NIAID inventors: Warren Strober, M.D.; Ivan Fuss
United States patent US 8,168,202 was issued on May 1, 2012, for hexavalent bovine rotavirus reassortant composition designed for use in developing countries. NIAID inventors: Albert Kapikian, M.D.; Yasutaka Hoshino, D.V.M.; David Morens, M.D.
United States patent US 8,147,840 was issued on April 3, 2012, for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) immunization strategies employing conformationally stabilized, surface-occluded peptides comprising a gp41 2F5 epitope in association with lipid. NIAID inventors: Peter Kwong, Ph.D.; Gilad Ofek, Ph.D.
Recent Collaboration Agreements
NIAID and Altor BioScience Corp. signed a cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA) to study development of soluble, single chain T-cell receptors (scTCRs) specific to HIV epitopes as presented by major histocompatibility complexes (MHCs) using Altor Bioscience’s proprietary scTCR technology. NIAID principal investigator: Mark Connors, M.D.
NIAID and Amgen Inc. signed a CRADA to analyze the ability of novel HIV immunogens to induce broadly neutralizing antibodies in the XenoMouseTM model. NIAID principal investigator: Gary J. Nabel, M.D., Ph.D.
NIAID and Pfizer, Inc., signed a CRADA under which they will study the role of anterior gradient homolog 2 (AGR2) in resistance to infection and development of immunopathology and allergic inflammation in elminth infection models using an AGR2/Gob4 targeting construct provided by Pfizer, Inc. NIAID principal investigator: Thomas A. Wynn, Ph.D.
NIAID and Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticas l Inc. have entered into a CRADA to study monoclonal antibodies against human regulatory T cells. NIAID principal investigator: Ethan Shevach, M.D.
NIAID and VSL Pharmaceuticals have entered into a CRADA to study amelioration of liver fibrosis following Schistosoma mansoni infection by treatment with VSL Pharmaceutical, Inc.'s probiotics preparation VSL#3. NIAID principal investigator: Thomas A. Wynn, Ph.D.
NIAID and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Biologicals have entered into a CRADA to evaluate sporogony inhibition activity GSK's sera of RTS,S/AS01E vaccinated children collected in GSK study Malaria-049 using a standard membrane mosquito feeding assay. NIAID principal investigator: Carole Long, Ph.D.
NIAID and GSK have entered into a CRADA to investigate the role of cathepsin C-dependent serine proteases in the maturation of interleukin-1beta in response to immunization of wild-type and caspase 1-deficient mice with complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) using GSK's proprietary cathepsin-C inhibitor GSK938. NIAID principal investigator: Alan Sher, Ph.D.
NIAID and the California Institute of Technology will collaborate under a research collaboration agreement (RCA) to test the effectiveness of vectored immunoprophylaxis technology against influenza infection. NIAID Principal Investigator: Gary J. Nabel, M.D., Ph.D.
NIAID and La Jolla Institute of Allergy & Immunology have signed an RCA to utilize bioinformatics-based computer software combined with immune assays to predict and to characterize viral CD8’ T-cell epitopes in nonhuman primates. NIAID principal investigator: Peter Jahrling, Ph.D.
NIAID and General Electric Global Research and the University of Washington have signed an RCA to develop and assess the utility DNA vaccines for biodefense priority pathogens. NIAID principal investigator: Peter Jahrling, Ph.D.
NIAID and Apprise Bio, Inc., have signed an RCA to study the use of Apprise’s proprietary cell-specific and epitope-specific barcoding technology to analyze multiple cell-associated nucleotide and protein targets. NIAID principal investigator: Daniel C. Douek, M.D., MRCP, Ph.D.
NIAID and the University of South Florida have signed an RCA to isolate and analyze progeny from a genetic cross of Plasmodium falciparum malaria parasites that differ in their ability to invade red blood cells. Analysis will help determine artemisinin drug resistance in Cambodia and Thailand. NIAID principal investigator: Thomas Wellems M.D., Ph.D.
NIAID and Tufts University have signed an RCA to develop and characterize cameloid antibodies against protein toxins that contribute to microbial virulence. NIAID principal investigator: Stephen Leppla, Ph.D.
NIAID and Kings College London have signed an RCA to study the physical and genetic properties of immune cells in blood collected from a large cohort of twins. NIAID principal investigator: Mario Roederer , Ph.D.
NIAID and AriaVax, Inc., have signed an RCA to study using modified aluminum oxide as an adjuvant for anthrax vaccines. NIAID principal investigator: Stephen Leppla, Ph.D.
NIAID and Graz University of Technology, Institute of Molecular Biotechnology have signed an RCA under which the structure and transmission blocking activity of Pfs48/45, a promising anti-malaria transmission blocking vaccine candidate, will be determined. NIAID principal investigator: Patrick Duffy, M.D.
NIAID and Avatar Medical, LLC, have signed an RCA to determine the atomic-level structure of the HIC-1 viral spike. Resultant atomic level information will be used to facilitate spike stabilization and immunogen design. NIAID principal investigator: Peter Kwong, Ph.D.