[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 209 (Wednesday, October 29, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56194-56195]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-28623]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Government-Owned Inventions; Availability for Licensing

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The inventions listed below are owned by agencies of the U.S. 
Government and are available for licensing in the U.S. in accordance 
with 35 U.S.C. 207 to achieve expeditious commercialization of results 
of federally-funded research and development. Foreign patent 
applications are filed on selected inventions to extend market coverage 
for U.S. companies and may also be available for licensing.

ADDRESSES: Licensing information and copies of the U.S. patent 
applications listed below may be obtained by writing to the indicated 
licensing contact at the Office of Technology Transfer, National 
Institutes of Health, 6011 Executive Boulevard, Suite 325, Rockville, 
Maryland 20852-3804; telephone: 301/496-7057; fax: 301/402-0220. A 
signed Confidential Disclosure Agreement will be required to receive 
copies of the patent applications.

Identification of a Viral Etiology for B-Precursor Acute 
Lymphoblastic Leukemia of Childhood

MA Smith (NCI)
Serial No. 60/036,991 filed 30 Jan 97
Licensing Contact: Joseph Contrera, 301/496-7056 ext. 244.

    The present invention claims that the possible etiologic agent for 
some cases of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in children is JC 
virus (a human polyomavirus), and that infection in utero can lead to 
subsequent development of ALL during childhood. JC virus was identified 
as a possible etiologic agent based on specific properties associated 
with the virus, including: (1) Specificity for B-lymphocytes as 
compared to T-lymphoctyes; (2) the ability to induce genomic 
instability via its T antigen, which interacts with cellular p53; and 
(3) epidemiological data showing concordance between the frequency of 
``susceptible'' (i.e. previously not exposed to JC virus and therefore

[[Page 56195]]

susceptible to a primary infection) women of reproductive age in a 
population and the rate of ALL in the population.
    Since women at risk for JV virus infection that might result in ALL 
in their child during pregnancy are those who have not yet had a 
primary infection, methods to achieve immunization are disclosed in the 
application. Since immunization could be specifically targeted to women 
who have never been exposed to JC virus, the application also discloses 
methods of screening women for prior exposure to the virus. In 
addition, methods for diagnosis of susceptibility are disclosed which 
can be applied to cord blood samples which may allow identification of 
children at high risk and allow early intervention. These methods of 
screening can be performed using either serological or molecular 
methods of analysis and both types are claimed in the application.

raf Protein Kinase Therapeutics

U Rapp, H App, SM Storm (NCI)
Serial No. 08/207,954 filed 18 Mar 94 (priority to 23 Aug 91)
Licensing Contact: Ken Hemby, 301/496-7735 ext. 265.

    Novel raf protein kinases may be valuable for the treatment of 
cancers. raf protein kinases are enzyme that stimulate cell growth in a 
variety of cell systems and, when expressed in specifically altered 
forms, can initiate malignant cell growth. These novel raf protein 
kinases, which are mutant constructs or are transcribed from raf 
antisense DNA, can be used to inhibit the activity of cellular raf 
protein kinases and prevent or reverse malignant cell growth. Other 
potential areas of application include proliferation diseases such as 
psoriasis and restenosis, and inflammatory diseases.
    This research has been described in Trends in Biochem. Sci. 19: 
474-480, 1994.
    Main advantages of invention: raf is by now a verified cancer 
target; raf directed drugs promise to be widely applicable and nontoxic 
based on clinical studies with antisense ODN.
    Stage of development: Ready to be used for drug screens, 
application in gene therapy. Further development required: Use of 
inhibitory raf mutants in gene therapy requires clinical studies.

    Dated: October 21, 1997.
Barbara M. McGarey,
Deputy Director, Office of Technology Transfer.
[FR Doc. 97-28623 Filed 10-28-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-M