[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 52 (Friday, March 16, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11765-11766]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-05311]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Prospective Grant of Exclusive Patent License: Magnetic Resonance 
Imaging System and Method for the Measurement of Geometric Features of 
Axons (Including Without Limitation Diameter, Radius, Perimeter, 
Volume, Surface and Angle) for the Characterization and Diagnosis of 
Central Nervous System Diseases and Disorders

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute for Child Health 
and Human Development (NICHD), an institute of the National Institutes 
of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, is contemplating 
the grant of an Exclusive Patent License to Brainvivo Ltd. (Brainvivo), 
located in Tel Aviv, Israel, to practice the inventions embodied in the 
patent applications listed in the Supplementary Information section of 
this notice.

DATES: Only written comments and/or complete applications for a license 
which are received by the NCI Technology Transfer Center on or before 
April 2, 2018 will be considered.

ADDRESSES: Requests for copies of the patent applications, inquiries, 
and comments relating to the contemplated Exclusive Patent License 
should be directed to: Surekha Vathyam, Ph.D.,

[[Page 11766]]

Senior Technology Transfer Manager, NCI Technology Transfer Center, 
9609 Medical Center Drive, RM 1E530 MSC 9702, Bethesda, MD 20892-9702 
(for business mail), Rockville, MD 20850-9702 Telephone: (240)-276-
5530; Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The following represents the intellectual 
property to be licensed under the prospective agreement:
     United States Provisional Patent Application No. 60/
485,658, filed July 8, 2003, titled ``Diffusion Tensor and Q-Space MRI 
Specimen Characterization'' [HHS Reference No. E-079-2003/0-US-01], 
status: expired;
     United States Provisional Patent Application No. 60/
571,064, filed May 14, 2004, titled ``Diffusion Tensor and Q-Space MRI 
Specimen Characterization'' [HHS Reference No. E-079-2003/0-US-04], 
status: expired;
     United States Patent Application No. 10/888,917, filed 
July 8, 2004, titled ``Diffusion Tensor and Q-Space MRI Specimen 
Characterization'' [HHS Reference No. E-079-2003/0-US-02], status: 
issued as Patent No. 7,643,863;
     International Patent Application No. PCT/US2004/22027, 
July 8, 2004, titled ``Diffusion Tensor and Q-Space MRI Specimen 
Characterization'' [HHS Reference No. E-079-2003/0-PCT-03], status: 
expired; and
     United States Patent Application No. 12/114,713, filed May 
2, 2008, titled ``Non-Invasive in vivo MRI Axon Diameter Measurement 
Methods'' [HHS Reference No. E-079-2003/1-US-01], status: issued as 
Patent No. 8,380,280.
    With respect to persons who have an obligation to assign their 
right, title and interest to the Government of the United States of 
America, the patent rights in these inventions have been assigned to 
the Government of the United States of America.
    The prospective Exclusive Patent License territory may be worldwide 
for the following field of use:

    ``Magnetic Resonance Imaging system and method for the 
measurement of geometric features of axons (including without 
limitation diameter, radius, perimeter, volume, surface and angle) 
for the characterization and diagnosis of Central Nervous System 
diseases and disorders.''

    A non-invasive, painless means for measuring axon diameter 
distribution (ADD) is disclosed in the intellectual property to be 
licensed, which has significance for imaging of the central nervous 
system, and for in vivo measurement of microanatomical (histological) 
features of nerves that are critically important in medicine, 
particularly, in neuroscience. ADD is altered in abnormal development 
(possibly even in autism), in degenerative process (e.g., aging, 
alcoholism, Alzheimer's disease) and diseases such as ALS (Lou Gehrig's 
disease). The invention provides a painless way to measure 
microanatomical features previously measurable using invasive 
histological means requiring biopsy.
    This notice is made in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 
part 404. The prospective Exclusive Patent License will be royalty 
bearing and may be granted unless within fifteen (15) days from the 
date of this published notice, the National Cancer Institute 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 part 404.
    In response to this Notice, the public may file comments or 
objections. Comments and objections, other than those in the form of a 
completed license application, will not be treated confidentially, and 
may be made publicly available.
    License applications submitted in response to this Notice must be 
complete and in acceptable form by the expiration date of this Notice 
to be considered for a license. License applications submitted in 
response to this Notice will be presumed to contain business 
confidential information and any release of information in these 
license applications will be made only as required and upon a request 
under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552.

    Dated: March 7, 2018.
Richard U. Rodriguez,
Associate Director, Technology Transfer Center, National Cancer 
Institute.
[FR Doc. 2018-05311 Filed 3-15-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4140-01-P