[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 85 (Tuesday, May 3, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26218-26219]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-09486]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Prospective Grant of an Exclusive Patent License: LZK-Targeting 
Cancer Therapeutic

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The National Cancer Institute (NCI), an institute of the 
National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Health and Human 
Services (HHS), is contemplating the grant of an Exclusive Patent 
License to practice the inventions embodied in the Patents and Patent 
Applications listed in the Supplementary Information section of this 
Notice to Uereka Biosciences Inc. (``Uereka''), headquartered in East 
Wakefield, NH.

DATES: Only written comments and/or applications for a license which 
are received by the National Cancer Institute's Technology Transfer 
Center on or before May 18, 2022 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: Jasmine Yang, Ph.D., Senior Technology Transfer 
Manager, NCI Technology Transfer Center, Telephone: 301-624-8746; 
Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Intellectual Property

(1) HHS Ref. No.: E-163-2020-0, Entitled: Leucine Zipper-bearing Kinase 
(LZK) Targeting Degraders and Methods of Use
    (a) US Provisional Patent Application No.: 63/073,835 HHS Ref. No.: 
E-163-2020-0-US-01 Filing Date: September 2, 2020
    (b) PCT Patent Application No.: PCT/US2021/048600 HHS Ref. No.: E-
163-2020-0-PCT-02 Filing Date: September 1, 2021
(2) HHS Ref. No.: E-169-2021-0, Entitled: LZK-Targeting ATP-Competitive 
Catalytic Inhibitors Suppress LZK Catalytic Activity, Inhibit MYC 
Expression, Inhibit AKT Activation, and Promote Cancer Cell Death and 
Tumor Regression
    (a) US Provisional Patent Application No.: 63/239,797 HHS Ref. No.: 
E-169-2021-0-US-01 Filing Date: September 1, 2021

    The patent rights in these inventions have been assigned and/or 
exclusively licensed to the government of the United States of America.
    The prospective exclusive license territory may be worldwide, and 
the field of use may be limited to the following:
    ``LZK[hyphen]targeting small molecules inhibitors or PROTACs to 
treat cancers overexpressing LZK..''
    Leucine-Zipper Kinase (LZK, encoded by MAP3K13, a resident gene of 
the 3q amplicon) is highly expressed in the mouse brain, particularly 
the cerebellum, but also in the intestine, olfactory bulb, liver, and 
kidney and shown to promote neurite growth. In addition, LZK 
overexpression and 3q amplification is associated with cancer such as 
squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). The Intellectual Property are directed 
to compositions of matter to LZK kinase inhibitors as well as the 
combination of a LZK binding moiety to an E3-ligase binding moiety via 
a linker and specific structures to each component as well as methods 
of using said compositions to treat LZK

[[Page 26219]]

overexpression diseases and condition and to degrade or inhibit LZK 
activity.
    This Notice is made in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 
part 404. The prospective exclusive license will be royalty bearing, 
and the prospective exclusive license may be granted unless within 
fifteen (15) days from the date of this published Notice, the National 
Cancer Institute receives written evidence and argument establishing 
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 
license application, will not be treated confidentially and may be made 
publicly available.
    License applications submitted in response to this Notice will be 
presumed to contain business confidential information and any release 
of information from 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: April 28, 2022.
Richard U. Rodriguez,
Associate Director, Technology Transfer Center, National Cancer 
Institute.
[FR Doc. 2022-09486 Filed 5-2-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P