Thomas Steitz, PhD, Sterling professor of molecular biophysics and biochemistry at Yale University and co-founder of New Haven, CT-based Rib-X Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and colleagues have discovered ribosomal structures of antibiotics that may enable the creation of novel treatments for drug-resistant infections, including resistant tuberculosis (TB). Rib-X is a development-stage antibiotics company whose platform is based on Steitz’s research. Steitz and colleagues in Yale’s department of molecular biophysics and biochemistry identified two structures of tuberactinomycins (antibiotics used to treat TB) bound to the ribosome. The identification of these structures provides insight for the design of novel antibiotic derivatives that could be effective against a variety of drug-resistant microorganisms. The researchers described their finding in Nature Structural & Molecular Biology.

In December 2009, Rib-X expanded its license agreement with Yale in the area of ribosomal antibiotic structure and function. Under the agreement, Rib-X will further explore the high-resolution crystal structure of new ribosome technology elucidated by Steitz’s team. “It’s very exciting to continually add to our knowledge of the ribosome,” says Steitz, who was awarded the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work determining a high-resolution crystal structure of the 50S subunit of the ribosome, which has proved to be a major target for antibiotic development. “These structures of viomycin and capreomycin bound to the ribosome allowed us to identify an important new ribosome binding site and to better understand how these antibiotics inhibit ribosome function.” Rib-X has a pipeline of antibiotics targeting multi-drug-resistant infections in the $25 billion antibiotics market. The foundation of its product portfolio is its proven discovery technology, the Ribosome Antibiotic Binding (RAB) platform.

Source: Business Wire

Posted March 10th, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Erie, PA-based Full Circle Investments LLC (FCI) is raising a $30 million commercialization fund that will invest in young companies and technologies developed at a handful of research institutions, including Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and the University of Pittsburgh. A typical investment will range between $1 million and $2 million, and most of the investments will be concentrated in a corridor between Baltimore and Rochester, NY. “We’re bridging the gap between research labs and large corporate entities,” says FCI’s managing partner Kurt Buseck, who previously ran the New York City office of Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp. and was a founding member of Bear Stearns’ Principal Investment Group. “We’re taking technologies and building them into products and small scale businesses that fit the needs of corporations,” he adds.

FCI Commercialization Fund I LP will focus on nanotechnology/microtechnology and information assurance, also known as cyber security. Fundraising began in October 2009 and the fund has raised close to $10 million, according to Buseck. Investing will begin once the fund hits the halfway point of $15 million, which Buseck expects to occur around June. FCI, which has strong relationships with some two dozen major corporations, will concentrate on identifying new technologies to fill gaps in the product offerings of these firms, according to Buseck. FCI would serve as a matchmaker between the startups it funds and the large companies. In addition to commercializing university technologies, FCI is looking to invest in what Buseck calls “orphan companies” — young nanotech or cyber security companies that previously received VC support. There are “an overwhelming number of opportunities” in today’s market, Buseck says.

Marc Malandro, director of Pitt’s Office of Technology Management, says he had discussions with Buseck when the fund was in the concept stage and believes that early stage funding is a crucial need. “If you’re going to commercialize technology and that’s the goal of your fund, you have to make sure you’re in the right place at the right time,” Malandro says. “While all money is a good thing, funding after the product is developed isn’t as helpful to a university in terms of rolling things out.” FCI’s focus is “an eclectic mix [that addresses] an underserved set of technology from our standpoint.”

“Our region has a long history of expertise in materials and nanotech,” adds Rich Lunak, CEO of Innovation Works, a state-funded economic development entity. He cites Penn State - also among the schools FCI plans to tap - and CMU as having national reputations in these disciplines. “Our region also has a history with information security,” Lunak says. “It’s good when funds build expertise and have sector focuses. They can develop a tight investment thesis and the expertise to develop companies.”

Source: Pittsburgh Business Times

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Arizona State University’s (ASU) technology transfer arm is partnering with Japan Technology Group (JTG) to collaborate on commercializing technologies from ASU and eight Japanese universities. Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE) will market Japanese IP in the United States, while JTG will do the same for ASU in Japan. The goal is to accelerate the transition of university innovations into the marketplace. The exposure of IP from ASU researchers to Japanese industry increases the chances these discoveries will be developed further and potentially commercialized, according to Augustine Cheng, managing director of AzTE. “This collaboration allows ASU and these Japanese universities to expand their international reach in the technology space,” he says.

While ASU has partnerships with many international and U.S. universities, this is JTG’s first formal collaboration with a U.S. university, says Taro Yaguchi, president of JTG, which is based in Philadelphia with offices in Tokyo. JTG represents technologies from Nagoya, Waseda, Hokkaido, Kyushu, Kumamoto, and Iwate Universities as well as Tokyo University of Science and Nara Institute of Science and Technology. “AzTE has a proven technology licensing record as well as an extensive network of domestic and international companies and universities on their roster,” Yaguchi says. “It is extremely beneficial to foster friendly ties with an established entity such as AzTE.” The two groups also will seek joint research opportunities, Yaguchi adds.

Source: Phoenix Business Journal

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

There’s less than a week left to register for Tech Transfer Marketing on a Shoestring: Guerilla Tactics in a Budget-Cut World. Join Jamie Hall (University of British Columbia), Brandon Reynolds (University of Texas at Tyler), and Dee Anderson (Brigham Young University) on Tuesday, March 9th for this invigorating 90-minute audioconference where you’ll discover a treasure trove of inventive, clever, out-of-the-box ideas to move your innovations to market without busting your budget. Here’s what our expert marketing team will cover during the program:

• Low cost and no-cost strategies for branding your TTO
• Going guerrilla: It’s the little things that count
• Best practices for web-based marketing:
  - Social media
  - E-mail strategies
  - Video clips and instructional videos
  - Online listings, and more
• How to engage faculty in your marketing efforts
• Internal and external PR efforts that work wonders
• Marketing collaborations with other universities
• Avoid these resource-draining no-cost efforts — they’re just not worth it!
• Leveraging campus resources such as MBA programs, entrepreneur-in-residence, etc. as partners in your marketing push
• Web analytics: They’re not just for gauging campaign results anymore. We’ll review a case study from the U of British Columbia that saved the TTO thousands of dollars and resources
• Platform marketing vs piecemeal strategy: which is best?
• How to engage web-savvy VCs and Angels

This how-to session also features an optional 30-minute add-on web forum for idea sharing. For complete details and to register, CLICK HERE.

The upcoming distance learning schedule also features:

• The Bilski Decision: Expert Strategies to Manage Its Impact on University IP — Tuesday, March 30, 2010
• Stretch Your TTO’s Budget: Tap Into Industry Resources and Partnerships — Thursday, April 8, 2010

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Audioconferences, Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Select investors who provide capital for startups will have access to a program that provides a first look at companies commercializing technologies developed at Purdue University. The Purdue Research Foundation has established the P3 Alliance - Purdue, People, Performance - as an angel investment network that provides investment information and connects individuals to firms or technologies in which they may invest. For a $500 annual membership fee, participants in the P3 Alliance will receive an online subscription to the network’s web site as well as invitations to three or four annual events featuring company presentations, access to documentation from firms seeking angel-level investments, and the ability to interact online with network participants and management. “The P3 Alliance will provide the necessary capital to commercialize innovative products and processes that are discovered in Purdue laboratories, and Purdue researchers will be able to deliver their discoveries to the marketplace on a much faster schedule,” says Joseph B. Hornett, senior vice president, treasurer, and COO of the Purdue Research Foundation. Prospective members are invited to apply online here.

Source: Your Story

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

The federal government can stimulate the creation of jobs and businesses by streamlining its policies for bringing new technologies to market, according to a report from the Association of University Research Parks (AURP). The report by Brian Darmody, president of the AURP and associate vice president for research and economic development at the University of Maryland, offers a 10-point plan that includes targeted federal investments to benefit high-tech states. “This is not only about money,” Darmody says. “It’s also a matter of adjusting the policies and regulations that too often deter entrepreneurial researchers in our universities and federal labs from commercializing their work.” Job creation in the United States will largely depend on startups and entrepreneurs who populate university research parks, laboratories, and incubators, he adds. “These are the main centers of innovation in this country. Much more of their work would be commercially viable if some of the roadblocks could be eliminated.”

The 10 steps offered in the report, entitled “The Power of Innovation,” include greater flexibility in federal grant policies for technology commercialization, improved allocation of the $25 billion in R&D spent internally in federal labs, and new connections between federal researchers and the private sector. The plan also supports pending federal legislation that would provide seed funding to create or expand research park infrastructure and calls for “cash for commercialization” - federal grants to encourage researchers to commercialize their work. In addition, the report recommends tax policy changes that would make it easier for the private sector to license IP from universities. The report is available here.

Source: PhysOrg.com

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Some of the U.S. Army’s top science and technology leaders are changing how they think and act so they can transfer new technology solutions to soldiers more quickly. “A solider’s life is far more complex than when I was a young infantryman,” says Maj. Gen. Nick Justice, commander of the Army’s Research, Development and Engineering Command (RDECOM). “We have to be nimble and responsive to those young soldiers.” Providing that support means looking at every level of Army science and technology, beginning in the Army’s labs, which produce basic technologies like new armor materials and partner with others doing research in applicable fields. Those technologies progress through the RDECOM centers to program managers, who shepherd particular pieces of equipment through the final phases and to the field. Along the way, collaboration takes place with academic researchers, industry, international partners, and others.

Now, the Army also is introducing combat veterans into critical junctures in the development of new equipment. “We will have senior noncommissioned officers who have three, four, five combat tours under their belts,” Justice explains. “They are not coming to be subject matter experts but to partner with my directors and my scientists and engineering officers in uniform. Engineering is about detail, and there’s no better place to look at detail than in our non-commissioned officer ranks.” Bringing soldiers into the system is appropriate because changes to the research, development, and engineering community are driven by changes in the field. “No longer do we look to buy an end device,” Justice points out. “Now we look to buy an integrated solution. And we need to design to modernize, not design the perfect product today. We know the requirements are going to change, so we need to build change into our products and into the Army organizations that produce those products.”

Source: United States Army

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

A new software tool, the Competitive Advantage Valuation (CAV) system, was specifically developed to provide the precision you need in IP valuation at a price every organization can afford. The low price has been cut even further under a collaboration with 2Market Information Inc., parent company of Tech Transfer E-News. Readers pay only $380, a full $250 off the regular price.

The CAV Software gives TTOs and other users a single, straightforward method for determining IP value. Created by nationally recognized IP law expert Ted Hagelin, the CAV tool yields clear and logical valuation results through a single program platform for effective negotiation, planning and reporting. The easy-to-use system includes detailed explanations and instructions for each step of the process, and over 75 research resources to obtain the information needed for valuation. For complete details and to order, CLICK HERE.

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Rhapsody Biologics (S) Pte Ltd, a Singapore-based startup launched in October 2009 using IP exclusively licensed from Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology, and Research (A*STAR), has licensed from Exploit Technologies - A*STAR’s marketing and commercialization arm - a portfolio of technologies to create a personalized peptide vaccine (PPV) platform. The technologies, expected to predict and optimize peptide vaccines for use at an individual and population level, were developed by Prof Ren Ee Chee at A*STAR’s Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN). The platform technology encompasses a high-throughput discovery system to identify immunogenic fragments of disease-causing agents that will stimulate an immune response.

The PPV platform, based on validated experimental data incorporated into a proprietary computational rational design algorithm, has successfully predicted hepatitis B virus peptide binding with close to 100% accuracy. In comparison, the accuracy of other methods used in vaccine prediction ranges from 60% to 70%. Additionally, the technology can be used to create vaccines capable of universal coverage and eliminate the non-responder effect, which occurs in 10% to 20% of people who receive a conventional vaccine. Rhapsody is in talks with two major pharmaceutical companies to develop vaccines based on the PPV platform. “We are focused on areas of unmet need in both prophylactic and therapeutic vaccines and will begin working with leading vaccine development companies later this year,” says Richard Kivel, Rhapsody’s chair and CEO.

Source: A*STAR

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

A spinoff developed by New York’s Roswell Park Cancer Institute and the University at Buffalo (UB) is working to train surgeons around the world in robotic surgery using technology that simulates the touch and feel of a robotic surgical system. The Robotic Surgical Simulator (RoSS) was developed over a four-year period by a Roswell surgeon and an engineering professor at UB. The duo launched Simulated Surgical Systems LLC to commercialize and sell the device to medical schools, hospitals, and surgical groups. Khurshid Guru, MD, co-founder and chief medical officer of the company and director of Roswell’s Center for Robotic Surgery, likens robotic surgical systems to an aircraft, saying they’re only as good as the pilot. However, there aren’t many training tools in existence, so many surgeons learn as they go. Like a flight simulator, the RoSS allows physicians to make mistakes in the virtual world instead of live patients.

The simulators are designed to offer two levels of training. One level covers basic operations, such as using the controls and improving hand-eye coordination. The devices also come with training software geared toward specific types of surgery. The RoSS will likely be most widely used to train surgeons in urological surgery, which comprises the largest share of robotic surgery. Other specialties include obstetrics and gynecological surgery, cardiac surgery, and nephrology, according to Thenkurussi “Kesh” Kesavadas, the company’s co-founder and chief technology officer. The system is being tested at four medical schools, including Detroit’s Henry Ford Hospital and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick, NJ. The company expects to introduce the RoSS units early next year at a price of about $100,000 each.

Robert Genco, vice provost at UB and director of the Office of Science Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach, says the company is the first spinoff formed jointly between UB and another entity. “It’s an interesting company,” he says. “All aspects of the technology are covered, plus the business expertise. It has great potential.” The State University of New York Research Foundation and Health Research, Inc., the technology transfer arm of Roswell Park, jointly licensed the technology to Simulated Surgical Systems.

Source: Buffalo Business First and The Buffalo News

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

Scientists at Montana State University (MSU) in Bozeman are exploring the use of nanomaterials to fight influenza and other viral respiratory infections. If their technology works in humans the way it does in mice, people will prepare for a respiratory viral assault by inhaling an aerosol spray containing tiny protein cages that will activate an immune response in their lungs. The activated immune state will offer protection against any respiratory virus for more than a month. “You would be able to prepare an entire population for an imminent respiratory viral infection, like the swine influenza infections that we just experienced,” says inventor Jim Wiley, PhD, assistant research professor in the department of veterinary molecular biology in MSU’s College of Agriculture. “It’s like having a fire department at your house before the fire,”

Wiley uses hollow protein cages made by a heat-loving bacterium that sets off an immune response in the lungs. The nanomaterial approach is based upon activating inducible Bronchus-Associated Lymphoid Tissue, or iBALT, in the lung. iBALT is a naturally occurring tissue that is made in the lung as part of the normal immune response to an infection. Wiley and colleagues described the technology in PLoS One. Their findings show that the presence of iBALT accelerated the recovery of infected mice without causing lung damage or other harmful side effects. The acceleration effect of the treatment disappeared gradually after one month. Currently, the team is testing its iBALT-based therapy in animal models, whose response to influenza is close to that seen in humans. MSU has a patent on the technology, which could be used to prevent or treat a range of pulmonary diseases, including influenza, and to counter bioterrorism threats, such as airborne microbes. The protein cage technology is available for licensing from MSU.

Source: MSU News Service

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

A mining researcher at Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC) is leading an effort to reduce the huge amounts of dust created by the large machines miners use to chew coal from the veins beneath the ground. Yoginder “Paul” Chugh, PhD, professor in the department of mining and mineral resources in the College of Engineering, is perfecting a dust control system for retrofitting on continuous coal mining machines. Using water spray technology and strategic placement of the spray nozzles to create “curtains” around dust clouds, Chugh’s team is making huge improvements in dust control efforts at several mines. Traditionally, continuous mining machines have relied on spraying water to control dust, Chugh says. His modified system adds more sprayers, using specific pressures and droplet sizes in strategic areas to knock down far more airborne dust. “We have added more lines of dust control defense and are seeing up to 50% reduction in the dust problem,” he says.

Wetting coal dust makes it heavier and takes it out of the air. This happens at a very small scale, with tiny droplets of water colliding with tiny dust particles. Often, however, the dust and water fail to come into contact or the water fails to adhere to the dust particle. Chugh’s system improves on this concept by not only wetting the dust but also using the spray to create a sort of water curtain that seals the dust at the face of the machine, away from the operator. The spray also pushes the fine dust near the roof back into the water spray area, increasing its “residence time” in that area and thereby giving it a better chance to contact water and drop out of the air. The system uses this hydraulic spray seal technology to form a curtain from the roof of the mine down, greatly reducing dust rollback. The curtain’s design forms a kind of “window” for the machine operator to clearly see the cutting drum’s work, while additional nozzles around the center of the cutting drum and coal pan at the front of the machine wet the coal further before it enters the conveyer system, cutting down further on dust.

At least two mines — Viper in central Illinois and Sunrise Mining Co. near Terre Haute, IN — are using the systems, while other mines are testing it. Chugh is working with SIUC’s Technology Transfer Program to license and market the technology. he hopes to market the system as both an after-market add-on to existing machines and a standard item on newly manufactured equipment.

Source: West Kentucky Star

Posted March 3rd, 2010 under Tech Transfer. [ Comments: none ]

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