[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 152 (Monday, August 9, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43203-43204]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-20458]


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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, Public Health Service, DHHS.

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 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 contacting Susan S. 
Rucker, J.D., Patent and Licensing Specialist, Office of Technology 
Transfer, National Institutes of Health, 6011 Executive Boulevard, 
Suite 325, Rockville, Maryland 20852-3804; telephone: 301/496-7057 ext. 
245; fax: 301/402-0220; e-mail: [email protected]. A signed Confidential 
Disclosure Agreement will be required to receive copies of the patent 
applications.

Lentivirus Vector System

SK Arya (NCI)

Serial No. 60/115,247 filed 07 Jan 1999
    This application relates to the field of gene therapy. More, 
particularly the application describes a vector system useful in gene 
therapy. The vectors employed in this system are lentiviral vectors, 
particularly retroviral vectors based on HIV2. Retroviral vectors based 
on HIV2, unlike most other retroviral vectors such as MuLV, are capable 
of infecting non-proliferating cells thereby making them useful in 
situations where other retroviral vectors are not. The vector system 
uses a two vector approach to minimize the possibility of HIV infection 
and comprises a transfer vector, for carrying the foreign gene of 
interest, and a packaging vector. The vector system demonstrates an 
improved ability to package the gene of interest when compared to a 
control without a loss in production of the transgene. In the 
experimental system this increase was 25 fold. This improved packaging 
ability is one means to address current low viral titers which are 
problematic in the gene therapy field.
    This research has been published, in part, in Human Gene Therapy 
1998 June 10; 9(9): 1371-86.

Thymosin 4 Promotes Wound Repair

KM Malinda, HD Kleinman (NIDCR) and A Goldstein

Serial No. 60/094,690 filed 30 Jul 1998
    This application describes the use of the compound thymosin 
4 as an agent for promoting wound healing. Thymosin 4 
is a small, 43 mer, 4.9 kDa, peptide which can be produced by chemical 
synthesis or recombinantly. Studies using a punch model for wounds in 
rats have shown that providing thymosin 4 either by systemic 
delivery (intraperitoneal) or topical delivery accelerates wound 
healing and that extracellular matrix deposition occurs in the wound 
bed. In addition, thymosin 4 has been shown previously to 
promote endothelial cell migration and to promote angiogenesis.

Mammalian Selenoprotein Differentially Expressed in Tumor Cells

VN Gladyshev (NCI), DL Hatfield (NCI), JC Wooten (NLM) and K Jeang 
(NIAID)

PCT/US99/07560 filed 06 Apr 1999 and Serial No. 60/080,850 filed 06 Apr 
1998
    This application describes the identification, cloning, and 
sequencing of a human protein which contains selenium. A murine homolog 
has also been identified. The gene encoding the protein has been 
localized to the short arm of chromosome 1 at 1p31. Early work 
indicates that levels of the protein and/or mRNA are decreased in 
prostate, liver, ovarian and fallopian tube cancers and in lymphoma. 
Thus, levels of the protein or mRNA may be useful clinically as 
diagnostic or prognostic tools. The fact that other selenium proteins 
are known to be involved in the immunological response and the fact 
that this protein was originally detected in T cells leads to a 
hypothesis that the protein may play a role in the immunological 
response. Antibodies and tools for expressing the protein recombinantly 
may be useful in conducting further research on the functionality of 
this protein. This selenoprotein may potentially mediate a 
chemopreventative effect of selenium in prostate cancer.

[[Page 43204]]

    This research has been published, in part, in JBC 1998 Apr 10; 
272(15): 8910-15.

Methods of Stimulating Proliferation and Differentiation of Human 
Pancreatic Cells Ex Vivo

JS Rubin (NCI), A Hayek, GM Beattie, T Otonkoski, V Quaranta

Serial Nos. 08/732,230 filed 14 Apr 1997; U.S. Patent 5,888,705 issued 
30 Mar 1999; PCT/US9/05521 filed 28 Apr 1995, and 08/235,394 filed 29 
Apr 1994; U.S. Patent 5,857,309 issued 24 Dec 1996
    These patents and applications generally relate to methods which 
may be used in treating diabetes. In particular, they describe methods 
for culturing pancreatic islet cells which will later be transplanted 
into patients. The culture of the pancreatic islet cells is carried out 
in the presence of hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) 
under conditions such that differentiation and/or proliferation of the 
pancreatic islet cells occurs and insulin production is stimulated or 
increased. These insulin-producing pancreatic islet cells can then be 
transplanted into patients having diabetes mellitus (Type I diabetes).
    This work has also been published in Otonkoski T et al. Diabetes 
43(7): 947-53 (Jul 1994), Hayek A et al. Diabetes 44(12): 1458-60 (Dec 
1995), Otonkoski T et al. Endocrinology 137(7): 3131-9 (Jul 1996), and 
Beattie, GM et al. Diabetes 45(9): 1223-8 (Sep 1996).

    Date: August 3, 1999.
Jack Spiegel,
Director, Division of Technology Development and Transfer Office of 
Technology Transfer National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 99-20458 Filed 8-6-99; 8:45 am]
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