[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 204 (Monday, October 23, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Page 54380]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-26189]



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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
National Institutes of Health


Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: Melanoma Antigens and 
Their Use in Diagnostic and Therapeutic Methods

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, DHHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This is notice in accordance with 15 U.S.C. 209(c)(1) and 37 
CFR 404.7(a)(1)(i) that the National Institutes of Health (NIH), 
Department of Health and Human Services, is contemplating the grant of 
an exclusive world-wide license to practice the invention embodied in 
U.S. Patent Application Serial Number 08/231,565, entitled ``Melanoma 
Antigens and Their Use in Diagnostic and Therapeutic Methods'' and 
related foreign patent applications to Therion Biologics Corporation, 
of Cambridge, Massachusetts. The patent rights in this invention have 
been assigned to the United States of America.
    The prospective exclusive license will be royalty-bearing and will 
comply with the terms and conditions of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7. 
This license will be limited to the field of treatment and/or 
prevention of cancer in humans using recombinant poxviruses comprising 
melanoma antigens. The melanoma antigens may be limited to MART-1 and 
gp100, encoded by Sequence ID Nos. 1 and 26 (described in patent 
application 08/231,565), respectively, and fragments thereof. This 
prospective exclusive license may be granted unless within 60 days from 
the date of this published notice, NIH receives written evidence and 
argument that establishes that the grant of the license would not be 
consistent with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7.
    The patent application describes nucleic acid sequences that encode 
novel melanoma antigens MART-1 and gp100, recombinant protein MART-1 
and gp100, peptides from MART-1 and gp100 which react with tumor 
infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL cells), and recombinant expression 
vectors comprising nucleic acids that encode MART-1 or gp100, and 
fragments thereof.

ADDRESSES: Requests for a copy of this patent application (which 
require a signed confidential disclosure agreement), inquiries, 
comments and other materials relating to the contemplated license 
should be directed to: Raphe Kantor, Ph.D., Office of Technology 
Transfer, National Institutes of Health, 6011 Executive Boulevard, 
Suite 325, Rockville, MD 20852; Telephone: 301/496-7735, ext 247; 
Facsimile: 301/402-0220. Applications for a license filed in response 
to this notice will be treated as objections to the grant of the 
contemplated license. Only written comments and/or applications for a 
license which are received by NIH on or before December 22, 1995 will 
be considered. Comments and objections submitted in response to this 
notice will not be made available for public inspection, and, to the 
extent permitted by law, will not be released under the Freedom of 
Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552.

    Dated: October 11, 1995.
Barbara M. McGarey,
Deputy Director, Office of Technology Transfer.
[FR Doc. 95-26189 Filed 10-20-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P