[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 83 (Thursday, April 29, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 23510]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-9684]



[[Page 23510]]

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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 an agency 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 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.

Formylpeptide Receptor (FPR) as a Target for Anti-Malignant Glioma 
Therapy

Ji Ming Wang et al. (NCI).
U.S. Provisional Application filed 25 Mar 2004 (DHHS Reference No. E-
069-2004/0-US-01).
Licensing Contact: Jesse S. Kindra; 301-435-5559; [email protected].

    The present invention identifies formylpeptide receptor (FPR) as a 
target for therapeutic intervention against malignant gliomas. More 
specifically, the invention describes a method for inhibiting a FPR-
mediated activity of a glioma cell expressing FPR, comprising 
contacting the cell with an effective amount of an agent that inhibits 
expression and/or activity of the FPR. Several classes of inhibitors of 
FPR expression and/or activity are shown to inhibit glioma cells, in 
particular, small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and small molecule 
antagonists of FPR.
    In addition to disclosing inhibitory agents for carrying out this 
method, the invention also discloses diagnostic methods for identifying 
highly malignant glioma cells and a method for identifying an agent 
that inhibits an FPR-mediated activity of a glioma cell.

Construction of a Recombinant Mammalian Expression System for the 
Production of Human TGF-beta 1 and Members of TGF-beta Superfamily 
Cytokines

Zhongcheng Zou and Peter Sun (NIAID).
U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/534,379 filed 06 Jan 2004 
(DHHS Reference No. E-048-2004/0-US-01).
Licensing Contact: Jesse S. Kindra; 301/435-5559; [email protected].

    Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (``TGF-beta 1'') is an anti-
inflammatory cytokine and is widely used in immunological research. 
Various recombinant expression systems produce TGF-beta 1, however, the 
yield of such expression systems remains low with the most effective 
systems producing from 1-5 mg/liter of cell culture with lengthy 
purification steps. As a result, the availability and price of the 
cytokine is unsatisfactory.
    To address this problem, this invention provides a novel mammalian 
recombinant TGF-beta expression system which produces TGF-beta 1 at 
approximately 30 mg/liter of cell culture, which is approximately 10 
times better than the yield provided by existing recombinant TGF-beta 1 
expression systems. Owing to the large superfamily of cytokines to 
which TGF-beta belongs, this expression system can be potentially 
applied to other members of the TGF-beta superfamily.

Immunogenic Peptides for the Treatment of Prostate and Breast Cancer

Jay Berzofsky, Sang-kon Oh, and Ira Pastan (NCI).
U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/476,467 filed 05 Jun 2003 (DHHS 
Reference No. E-116-2003/0-US-01).
Licensing Contact: Brenda Hefti; 301/435-4632; [email protected].

    This invention relates to antigenic sequences of the T cell 
receptor gamma alternate reading frame protein (TARP). TARP is 
expressed in breast cancer cells and prostate cancer cells. The patent 
application discloses immunogenic TARP polypeptides that generate an 
immune response to breast or prostate cancer cells that express TARP.
    These include sequences modified to make them more immunogenic. The 
application also discloses specific TARP nucleic acid sequences and 
host cells transfected with these nucleic acids. This invention may be 
useful as a therapeutic to treat breast or prostate cancer.

Retroviral Packaging Cell Lines Based on Gibbon Ape Leukemia Virus

A. Dusty Miller (EM), Jose V. Garcia-Martinez (EM), Maribeth V. Eiden 
(NIMH), Carolyn A. Wilson (NIMH).
U.S. Patent 5,470,726 issued 28 Nov 1995 (DHHS Reference No. E-201-
1991/0-US-02).
Licensing Contact: Pradeep Ghosh; 301/435-5282; [email protected].

    Gene therapy and gene transfer have recently been recognized as 
effective therapeutic tools to combat diseases. Accordingly, market 
demands for vectors and carriers to facilitate such interventions have 
surged in recent years. Retroviral vectors provide an efficient and 
safe means of gene transfer to eukaryotic cells. The present invention 
relates to genetic engineering involving retrovirus packaging cells 
that produce retroviral vectors. Specifically, the invention involves 
the expression plasmids encoding the envelop glycoproteins of a family 
of primate type C retrovirus, namely, the Gibbon Ape leukemia virus 
(GALV). Recombinant vectors derived from murine leukemia virus (MLV) 
have been widely used to introduce genes in human gene therapy clinical 
trials. A key determinant for their use in clinical gene therapy is the 
availability of packaging cell lines capable of producing large amounts 
of virus with identical titers. The present invention describes the 
packaging cell lines that produce MLV-based gene transfer vectors with 
the envelope from gibbon ape leukemia virus. Retroviral vectors 
produced are of high titer and have an expanded host range providing a 
means for gene transfer to a wide range of animal species. The gene 
transfer vectors produced are non-infectious and there was no evidence 
of production of helper virus, making these vectors safe. These cell 
lines are critical for producing large amounts of standardized vector 
necessary for efficient for in vivo and ex vivo gene transfer. 
Therefore, this invention has a significant commercial application as a 
tool in the development of diagnostic and therapeutic interventions 
related to gene transfer and gene therapy.

    Dated: April 24, 2004.
Steven M. Ferguson,
Director, Division of Technology Development and Transfer, Office of 
Technology Transfer, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 04-9684 Filed 4-28-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P