[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 34 (Monday, February 23, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8099-8100]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-3809]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: Methods of Using 
Deacetylase Inhibitors To Treat Dystrophies and Other Tissue 
Degeneration Disorders

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

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: This notice, in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 209(c)(1) and 37 CFR 
404.7(a)(1)(i), that the National Institutes of Health, Department of 
Health and Human Services, is contemplating the grant of an exclusive 
patent license to practice the inventions embodied in U.S. Provisional 
Patent Application No. 60/335,705, filed October 18, 2001, now 
abandoned, entitled ``Methods of Using Deacetylase Inhibitors as Tools 
to Promote Cell Differentiation and Regeneration'' [HHS Ref. No. E-353-
2001/0-US-01]; U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/343,854, 
filed October 25, 2001, now abandoned, entitled ``Methods of Using 
Deacetylase Inhibitors as Tools to Promote Cell Differentiation And 
Regeneration'' [HHS Ref. No. E-353-2001/1-US-01]; PCT Patent 
Application No. PCT/US02/33570, filed October 17, 2002, now abandoned, 
entitled ``Methods of Using Deacetylase Inhibitors as Tools to Promote 
Cell Differentiation and Regeneration'' [HHS Ref. No. E-353-2001/2-PCT-
01]; U.S. Patent Application No. 10/492,901, filed April 15, 2004, 
which issued as U.S. Patent No. 7,229,963, on June 12, 2007, entitled 
``Methods of Using Deacetylase Inhibitors as Tools to Promote Cell 
Differentiation and Regeneration'' [HHS Ref. No. E-353-2001/2-US-02]; 
and U.S. Patent Application No. 11/800,151, filed May 4, 2007, which 
published as 2008/0248994, on October 9, 2008, entitled ``Methods of 
Using Deacetylase Inhibitors to Promote Cell Differentiation and 
Regeneration'' [HHS Ref. No. E-353-2001/2-US-03] to ADVANCELL Advanced 
In Vitro Cell Technologies, S.A. which has an office in Barcelona, 
Spain. The patent rights in these inventions have been assigned to the 
United States of America and The Salk Institute for Biological Studies.
    The prospective exclusive license territory may be ``worldwide'', 
and the field of use may be limited to ``the use of deacetylase 
inhibitors to treat dystrophies and other disorders involving tissue 
degeneration.''

DATES: Only written comments and/or applications for a license which 
are received by the NIH Office of Technology Transfer on or before 
April 21, 2009 will be considered.

ADDRESSES: Requests for copies of the patent application, inquiries, 
comments, and other materials relating to the contemplated exclusive 
license should be directed to: Suryanarayana (Sury) Vepa, PhD, J.D., 
Licensing and Patenting Manager, Office of Technology Transfer, 
National Institutes of Health, 6011 Executive Boulevard, Suite 325, 
Rockville, MD 20852-3804; Telephone: (301) 435-5020; Facsimile: (301) 
402-0220; E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This technology relates to methods of 
enhancing progenitor cell differentiation, including enhancing 
myogenesis, neurogenesis and hematopoiesis, by contacting a progenitor 
cell with an effective amount of a deacetylase inhibitor (DI). The 
progenitor cell can be part of cell culture, such as a cell culture 
used for in vitro or in vivo analysis of progenitor cell 
differentiation, or can be part of an organism, such as a human or 
other mammal. Contacting the progenitor cell with a DI can lead to 
enhancement of expression of terminal cell-type specific genes in the 
progenitor cell, such as enhancing expression of muscle-specific genes 
in myoblasts, and can lead to skeletal muscle hypertrophy. 
Administering a DI to a subject also can provide some prophylactic or 
therapeutic effect for inhibiting, preventing, or treating conditions 
associated with a degeneration or loss of tissue. The DI can be 
administered to a subject as part of a pharmaceutical composition.
    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. 
The prospective exclusive license may be granted unless within sixty 
(60) days from the date of this published notice, the 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.
    Applications for a license in the field of use filed in response to 
this notice will be treated as objections to the grant

[[Page 8100]]

of the contemplated exclusive license. Comments and objections 
submitted 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: February 10, 2009.
Richard U. Rodriguez,
Director, Division of Technology Development and Transfer, Office of 
Technology Transfer, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. E9-3809 Filed 2-20-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P