[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 158 (Wednesday, August 15, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48997-48998]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-20059]


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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, HHS.

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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 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.

Quick2Insight: 3D Biological Tissue Image Rendering Software

    Description of Technology: Available for licensing for 
commercialization or internal use is software providing automatic 
visualization of features inside biological image volumes in 3D. The 
software provides a simple and interactive visualization for the 
exploration of biological datasets through dataset-specific transfer 
functions and direct volume rendering. The method employs a K-Means++ 
clustering algorithm to classify a two-dimensional histogram created 
from the input volume. The classification process utilizes spatial and 
data properties from the volume. Then using properties derived from the 
classified clusters the software automatically generates color and 
opacity transfer functions and presents the user with a high quality 
initial rendering of the volume data. User input can be incorporated 
through the simple yet intuitive interface for transfer function 
manipulation included in our framework. Our new interface helps users 
focus on feature space exploration instead of the usual effort 
intensive, low-level widget manipulation.
    Potential Commercial Applications:
     Biological tissue visualization in 3D
     Research uses
    Competitive Advantages:
     User friendly
     Intuitive interface
    Development Stage: Prototype
    Inventors: Yanling Liu, Jack Collins, Curtis Lisle (all of FCRDC/
SAIC)
    Publications:

    1. Maciejewski R, et al. Structuring feature space: a non-
parametric method for volumetric transfer function generation. IEEE 
Trans Vis Comput Graphics. 2009 Nov-Dec;15(6):1473-80. [PMID 
19834223]
    2. Zhou J, Takatsuka M. Automatic transfer function generation 
using contour tree controlled residue flow model and color 
harmonics. IEEE Trans Vis Comput Graphics. 2009 Nov-Dec;15(6):1481-
8. [PMID 19834224]
    3. R[ouml]ttger S, et al. Spatialized Transfer Functions. In: 
Brodlie K, Duke DJ, and Joy KI (eds.) EuroVis05 Joint Eurographics--
IEEE VGTC Symposium on Visualization 1-3 June 2005, Leeds, United 
Kingdom, pp. 271-278. [doi: 10.2312/VisSym/EuroVis05/271-278]

    Intellectual Property: HHS Reference No. E-254-2012/0 -- Software 
Research Tool. Patent protection is not being pursued for this 
technology.
    Licensing Contact: Michael Shmilovich; 301-435-5019; 
[email protected].
    Collaborative Research Opportunity: The National Cancer Institute 
is seeking statements of capability or interest from parties interested 
in collaborative research to further develop, evaluate or commercialize 
automatic 3D visualization of biological image volumes. For 
collaboration opportunities, please contact John Hewes, Ph.D. at 
[email protected].

Human Renal Epithelial Tubular Cells for Studies of Cystinosis

    Description of Technology: Cystinosis is a rare lysosomal storage 
disease, affecting about 500 people (mostly children) in the United 
States and about 2000 people worldwide. It is an autosomal recessive 
disorder, wherein patients have a defect in the CTNS gene, which codes 
for the lysosomal cystine transporter. In this disorder, cystine (an 
amino acid) is not properly transported out of the lysosome and 
accumulates in the cells, forming damaging crystals. As a result, 
cystinosis slowly destroys various organs in the body, including 
kidneys, liver, muscles, eyes, and brain. Currently, the only treatment 
for cystinosis is cysteamine, a drug that reduces intracellular cystine 
levels, although this treatment requires frequent dosing.
    Available from NHGRI are human renal epithelial tubular cells 
isolated from cystinosis patient samples. These cells may be useful for 
studying the biology of cystinosis, as well as the metabolic role of 
the lysosomal cystine transporter; they may also be useful for the 
development of screening assays for potential therapeutic agents for 
cystinosis.
    Potential Commercial Applications:
     Use in studies focused on cystinosis and lysosomal 
metabolism
     Use in assays for high throughput screening of potential 
therapeutic agents
    Competitive Advantages: These cell lines were derived from 
cystinosis patient samples, and studies performed using these cells are 
expected to correlate well to the initiation, progression and treatment 
of cystinosis in patients.
    Development Stage: Early-stage
    Inventor: William A. Gahl (NHGRI)
    Intellectual Property: HHS Reference No. E-204-2012/0--Research 
Tool. Patent protection is not being pursued for this technology.
    Licensing Contact: Tara L. Kirby, Ph.D.; 301-435-4426; 
[email protected].

Context Aware Mobile Device Software for Substance Abuse Interventions 
and Behavioral Modification

    Description of Technology: Available for licensing for commercial 
development is software that provides personalized feedback for 
treating drug dependence and associated risky behaviors. The tool is 
designed for both healthcare providers at the point-of-care and for 
self-help. Many people who could benefit from treatment do not receive 
it because of its low availability and high cost. The available 
software

[[Page 48998]]

``mPAL'' (Mobile Personalized Assessment and Learning), combines 
mHealth-based educational functions with the Ecological Momentary 
Assessment (EMA) functions of TED (transactional electronic diary) 
software. mPAL allows interchange of data obtained from EMA and 
learning system in order to deliver context-aware intervention in real 
time, customized to the individual needs of participants. mPAL enables 
participants to interact with educational materials at the time and 
place of their choosing and receive personalized feedback when and 
where it is most needed. The software integrates into HuRlS where 
comprehensive patient data can be leveraged alongside the mPAL data to 
provide better understanding of the underlying factors under 
investigation.
    Potential Commercial Applications:
     Substance abuse
     Drug abuse
     Alcoholism
     Behavioral modification
     Smoking cessation
     Pain management
    Competitive Advantages:
     Low-cost mobile treatment mechanism
     Provides personalized feedback to patients at the time and 
place they choose
     Proven usability in prior clinical studies
    Development Stage: Clinical
    Inventors: Massoud R. Vahabzadeh, Mustapha Mezghanni, and Jia-Ling 
Lin (all of NIDA)
    Publications:

    1. Vahabzadeh M, et al. PGIS: Electronic diary data integration 
with GPS data initial application in substance-abuse patients. In, 
Proc. 23rd IEEE International Symposium on Computer-Based Medical 
Systems, pp 474-9, 2010. [DOI: 10.1109/CBMS.2010.6042691]
    2. Lin JL, et al. A high-level specification for adaptive 
ecological momentary assessment: real-time assessment of drug 
craving, use and abstinence. AMIA Annu Symp Proc. 2005:455-9. [PMID 
16779081]
    3. Vahabzadeh M, et al. An electronic diary software for 
ecological momentary assessment (EMA) in clinical trials. In, Proc. 
17th IEEE International Symposium on Computer-Based Medical Systems, 
pp 167-72, 2004. [DOI: 10.1109/CBMS.2004.1311709]

    Intellectual Property: HHS Reference No. E-195-2012/0--Software. 
Patent protection is not being pursued for this technology.
    Licensing Contact: Michael Shmilovich; 301-435-5019; 
[email protected].
    Collaborative Research Opportunity: The NIDA, IRP, Biomedical 
Informatics Section, is seeking statements of capability or interest 
from parties interested in collaborative research to further develop, 
evaluate or commercialize Mobile Personalized Assessment & Learning for 
Addiction Treatment and Behavioral Modification. For collaboration 
opportunities, please contact Vio Conley at [email protected].

Plasmid Useful in Transplantation Therapy for Age-Related Eye Disease

    Description of Technology: Researchers have developed a green 
fluorescent protein (GFP) based plasmid that can be used to detect 
differentiated retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells. RPE is a layer 
of cells located behind the eye that becomes damaged in age-related 
macular degeneration (AMD). Current cell based therapies for treating 
AMD focus on generating RPE cells from stem cells. This GPF-based 
plasmid can be inserted into growing stem cells, and the fluorescence 
marker can be used to detect and purify stem cells differentiating into 
RPE cells. This advancement allows generation of a purified population 
of RPE cells for in vitro and transplantation purposes.
    Additionally, cells comprising the GFP-based construct may be 
useful in high-throughput drug screening as a means to: (1) identify 
potential therapeutic targets of RPE degenerative diseases such as AMD, 
and (2) evaluate initial toxicity of candidate drugs in RPE cells.
    Potential Commercial Applications:
     Fluorescence based marker for detecting and purifying 
differentiated RPE cells
     Potential use in high throughput drug screening
    Competitive Advantages: GFP based marker allows for fast and simple 
detection of differentiated RPE cells from stem cells.
    Development Stage:
     Prototype
     In vitro data available
    Inventors: Kapil Bharti (NINDS), Heinz Arnheiter (NINDS), Sheldon 
Millier (NEI)
    Publication: Bharti K, et al. The new paradigm: retinal pigment 
epithelium cells generated from embryonic or induced pluripotent stem 
cells. Pigment Cell Melanoma Res. 2011 Feb;24(1):21-34. [PMID 20846177]
    Intellectual Property: HHS Reference No. E-054-2012/0--Research 
Tool. Patent protection is not being pursued for this technology.
    Licensing Contact: Lauren Nguyen-Antczak, Ph.D., J.D.; 301-435-
4074; [email protected].

    Dated: August 10, 2012.
Richard U. Rodriguez,
Director, Division of Technology Development and Transfer, Office of 
Technology Transfer, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 2012-20059 Filed 8-14-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P