Search Technologies

Surgery specialists from Johns Hopkins University, in collaboration with researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), developed peptide hydrogel compositions and methods to suture blood vessels during microsurgery. The hydrogels particularly benefit surgeons in whole tissue transplant procedures. The NCI seeks co-development research collaborations for further development of this technology.

Researchers at NCI developed a rabbit monoclonal antibody that recognizes the marker for CD133 and is useful in pharmacodynamic testing to inform targeted anti-cancer chemotherapy development and clinical monitoring. CD133 is a cell surface glycoprotein used as a marker and expressed in stem cells such as hematopoietic stem cells, endothelial progenitor cells and neural stem cells. The NCI seeks collaborative co-development or licensing partners for this technology.

Researchers at the NCI have developed a vaccine technology that stimulates the immune system to selectively destroy metastasizing cells. Stimulation of T cells with the Brachyury peptide promote a robust immune response and lead to targeted lysis of invasive tumor cells. NCI seeks licensing or co-development of this invention.

Investigators at the National Cancer Institute''s Vaccine Branch have found that beta-mannosylceramide (Beta-ManCer) promotes immunity in an IFN-gamma independent mechanism and seek statements of capability or interest from parties interested in collaborative research to further develop, evaluate, or commercialize beta-ManCer.

Researchers at the National Eye Institute (NEI), have developed a cryopreservation and cell recovery system designed specifically for the efficient cryopreservation, transportation and subsequent thawing of monolayers and tissues on a substrate. This closed cryopreservation/defrost system allows for sterility in addition to increased viability, recovery and safety of tissues that can be used for in vitro culture or surgical transplantation.

Multi-potential hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPC) can differentiate into any class of blood cells, and are highly useful in regenerative medicine, immunology, and cancer immunotherapy. Current methods to generate HPCs are limited either due to the use of animal products, or the high cost and low efficiency of animal product free systems. Researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have developed a protocol to prepare HPCs from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC), using human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSC) in a three-dimensional (3D) co-culture condition. Thus, they are able to generate HPCs in a fully human, autologous system, which can be used to further generate immune cells for therapy. This protocol is adaptable to mass production by bioreactors. NCI seeks licensees for these methods of generating HPCs in a 3D co-culture with hMSCs to be used in a variety of applications such as treatment of blood disorders, regenerative medicine, and antibody production.

Researchers at the National Institutes on Aging (NIA) seek research co-development or licensees for novel compounds and pharmaceutical formulations to treat autoimmune disorder and inflammation. Other potential indications for these compounds include pain, itching, and/or skin disorders.

The thymus is the only organ capable of producing conventional, mature T cells; a crucial part of the adaptive immune system. However, its efficiency and function are progressively reduced as we age, leading to a compromised immune system in the elderly. Moreover, production of T cells with specific receptors is an important concern for cancer immunotherapy. Current in vitro methods produce immature T cells that are not useful for therapy. Researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have generated an autologous thymic organoid from human pluripotent stem cells to address this problem. The organoid can be used to develop clinical applications such as production of autologous T and natural killer T (NKT) cells and reconstitution of the adaptive immune system. NCI is seeking licensees for the thymic organoid and the method of its generation to be used in a variety of clinical applications.

The marginal distribution constrained optimization (MADCO) methodology is disclosed wherein a 2D (or higher-dimensional) spectrum is estimated from initial 1D marginal distribution data. These 1D marginal distributions are used as constraints in the reconstruction of the 2D spectra. MADCO accelerates and improves the reconstruction of multidimensional NMR relaxation/diffusion spectra, making it suitable for MRI applications on a voxel-by-voxel basis by vastly reducing the amount of data acquired and data necessary for creating MRI images.