[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 37 (Thursday, February 24, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10374-10375]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-4171]
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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.
ADDRESSES: 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.
LightCensor: A Detecting and Control Program That Guarantees That a
Mobile Device Be Used Only in Appropriate Lighting Conditions When
Displaying Medical Images
Description of Invention: The invention provides algorithm that
when used in a mobile device (e.g. smartphone) can enhance the
capabilities of mobile devices to be used by medical professionals for
medical imaging.
Thanks to its swiftly improved display quality, the smartphone has
been advocated by the medical imaging vendors for viewing medical
images in specific conditions that require urgency of the read or when
full-size workstation displays are not readily available. However, as a
hand-held device, the viewing conditions of a smartphone (e.g. ambient
light and hand shaking) are not predictable and may adversely affect
the perceived image quality. The present invention proposes the use of
the built-in sensors in iPhone-like mobile devices to detect and adapt
to the viewing conditions and hand shaking. The built-in camera can be
used to capture the ambient light for determining the adaptation level,
which affects the brightness, contrast and color perception. The built-
in accelerometers can be used to detect orientation and moving velocity
of the display, which affect the perceived spatial resolution. The
execution of critical tasks can be then censored based on the detected
scenario. If the viewing conditions are not suitable for reading
medical images, for example, then the program could halt until the
viewing conditions improve.
This invention can be used by consumer-grade mobile devices which
were not originally designed for medical purposes to show medical
images with improved perceived image quality.
Applications
Biomedical imaging.
Radiology.
Advantages: Improved image quality of mobile devices that minimizes
issues related to inadequate light conditions or hand movement.
Development Status
Algorithm developed.
Prototype is being built.
Inventors: Wei-Chung Cheng and Aldo G. Badano (FDA).
Patent Status: HHS Reference No. E-284-2010/0--Research Tool/
Software. Patent protection is not being pursued for this technology.
Licensing Status: Available for licensing.
Licensing Contacts
Uri Reichman, PhD, MBA; 301-435-4616; [email protected].
Michael Shmilovich, Esq.; 301-435-5019;
[email protected].
A Novel MRI Phantom for Breast Imaging
Description of Invention: The invention offered for licensing is in
the field of breast cancer imaging. More specifically it relates to
novel breast phantoms that can be used as reference in breast imaging.
The anthropomorphic breast phantoms described in the invention comprise
a combination of adipose tissue mimicking components and fibroglandular
tissue mimicking components. Typically, x-ray attenuation coefficients
or magnetic resonance relaxation times T1 and T2 are selected that are
sufficiently similar to actual patient tissues. The mimicking
components are distributed within the phantom such that images of the
phantom contain features similar to those of patient tissues. A breast
phantom can be based on a lard/egg white combination that is shaped to
approximate a human breast, or a compressed human breast as prepared
for mammography. The phantoms can include lesion chambers that permit
the introduction of contrast agents to simulate benign or malignant
lesions, and contrast agent concentration can be time varied to produce
washout curves.
Applications: Imaging of breast cancer as well as calibration and
optimization of related instrumentation.
Advantages: The breast phantoms of the invention precisely mimics
human breast in several of their characteristics as mentioned above.
Furthermore, they can be utilized in conjunction with x-ray mammography
and/or with MRI. The phantoms may therefore be used to enhance the
accuracy and quality of diagnostic breast imaging, and thus avoid
unnecessary procedures. In addition, wide-spread use of the breast
phantoms will lead to improved standardization in the field of breast
imaging.
Development Status: The methods of making the phantoms have been
established. Clinical usefulness has to be established.
Inventors: Melanie Freed and Aldo Badano (FDA).
Patent Status
U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/385,929 filed 23 Sep
2010 (HHS Reference No. E-126-2010/0-US-01), entitled ``Evaluation of
Breast Dynamic Contrast-enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging''.
U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/424,495 filed 17 Dec
2010 (HHS Reference No. E-126-2010/1-US-01), entitled
``Anthropomorphic, X-ray and Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic
Resonance Imaging Phantom for Quantitative Evaluation of Breast Imaging
Techniques''.
Licensing Status: Available for licensing.
[[Page 10375]]
Licensing Contacts
Uri Reichman, PhD, MBA; 301-435-4616; [email protected].
John Stansberry, PhD; 301-435-5236; [email protected].
Meningococcal and Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine and Method of Using
Same
Description of Invention: Pneumococcal diseases are a major public
health problem all over the world. The etiological agent, Streptococcus
pneumoniae (the pneumococcus) is surrounded by a polysaccharide
capsule. Differences in the composition of this capsule permit
serological differentiation between about 90 capsular types, some of
which are frequently associated with pneumococcal disease, others
rarely. Invasive pneumococcal infections include pneumonia, meningitis
and febrile bacteremia; among the common non-invasive manifestations
are otitis media, sinusitis and bronchitis. At least 1 million children
die of pneumococcal disease every year, most of these being young
children in developing countries. Vaccination is the only available
tool to prevent pneumococcal disease. The recent development of
widespread microbial resistance to essential antibiotics underlines the
urgent need for more efficient pneumococcal vaccines.
Meningococcal disease is a contagious bacterial disease caused by
the meningococcus (Neisseria meningitidis). It is spread by person-to-
person contact through respiratory droplets of infected people. There
are 3 main clinical forms of the disease: the meningeal syndrome, the
septic form and pneumonia. The onset of symptoms is sudden and death
can follow within hours. In as many as 10-15% of survivors, there are
persistent neurological defects, including hearing loss, speech
disorders, loss of limbs, mental retardation and paralysis. Up to 5-10%
of a population may be asymptomatic carriers. These carriers are
crucial to the spread of the disease as most cases are acquired through
exposure to asymptomatic carriers. Waning immunity among the population
against a particular strain favors epidemics, as do overcrowding and
climatic conditions such as dry seasons or prolonged drought and dust
storms. The disease mainly affects young children, but is also common
in older children and young adults. The disease occurs sporadically
throughout the world with seasonal variations and accounts for a
proportion of endemic bacterial meningitis. However, the highest burden
of the disease is due to the cyclic epidemics occurring in the African
meningitis belt.
With the burden of S. pneumoniae and N. meningitidis infection on
the public health system at a global scale, it is desirable to have a
single vaccine that is effective to prevent disease resulting from the
infection of both pathogens. This application claims immunogenic
compositions for inducing an immune response to two different
microorganisms, S. pneumoniae and N. meningitidis. The application also
claims conjugate vaccines comprising at least one N. meningitidis
capsular polysaccharide conjugated to a recombinant pneumococcal
protein.
Applications: Conjugate vaccine for the prevention and/or therapy
of meningococcal and pneumococcal infections.
Advantages
Rapid production time.
Higher-yielding manufacturing method.
Low manufacturing cost.
Development Status: Preclinical studies have been conducted by the
inventors.
Inventors
Stanley S. Tai (Howard University).
Che-Hung Robert Lee (FDA).
Patent Status: HHS Reference No. E-030-2010/0--
U.S. Patent Application No. 12/425,232 filed 16 Apr 2009.
PCT/US2010/031083 filed 14 Apr 2010.
Licensing Status: Available for licensing.
Licensing Contact: Daniel G. McCabe; Associate General Counsel for
Business Transactions; Howard University, Office of the General
Counsel; 2400 6th Street, NW., Suite 321; Washington, DC 20059; Office:
(202) 806-2650; Fax: (202) 806-6357; E-mail: [email protected].
Dated: February 16, 2011.
Richard U. Rodriguez,
Director, Division of Technology Development and Transfer, Office of
Technology Transfer, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 2011-4171 Filed 2-23-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P