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Multilevel Modulation for Free Space Optical (FSO) Communications and Error Correction Methodology
Introduction Wireless optical links, or free space optics (FSO), enable point-to-point, high-speed communication with low installation costs and high levels of security, and they are especially useful in situations where fiberoptics are impractical. Unfortunately, this technique suffers from signal
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Crosslinkable Hole Transporting Materials for Organic Light Crosslinkable Hole Transporting Materials for Organic Lightemitting
Introduction High-performance organic or polymer light-emitting diodes comprise multilayer configurations having hole-transporting, emissive and electron-transporting layers to balance the injection and transport of both holes and electrons. In general, holetransporting material is the first applied
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PCR System for Real-time Quantification of Samples
This invention comprises a nucleic acid quantification kit and method for determining the initial concentration or mass fraction of a target nucleic acid present in a sample. More particularly, the invention relates to the use of real-time competitive quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) an
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Polypeptides and Antibodies Associated with HTLV
BACKGROUND: Human T-lymphotropic viruses (HTLV) are part of a family of retroviruses called oncogenic retrovirues. HTLVs were originally identified for their ability to infect human lymphocytes, particularly T cells, resulting in their transformation to lymphomas and leukemias. More recently, they
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Monoclonal Antibodies and Method for Detecting Dioxins and Dibenzofurans
Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) are toxic pollutants which pose persistent threats to both the human population and to the biosphere in general. Although the risk posed by these contaminants has ultimately come to be appreciated, there has been no
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Vectors for the Recombinant Expression of Human Immunoglobulins
Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are an essential tool in numerous research, therapeutic, and diagnostic applications, as mAbs can be customized to bind a desired antigen. While this is highly advantageous in generating very high binding specificity, the actual process of producing mAb-producing hybrido
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Chemokine and Peptide Derivatives for Would-Healing, Fibrotic Disease Treatment, and Tumor Supression
A University of California researcher has characterized an avian chemokine that acts both directly and as an agent for various growth factors in wound-healing. The gene that encodes this protein is an inducible chemokine gene that is expressed at low levels in tissue of mesenchymal origin, but is ex
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Intensity Referenced Oxygen and Pressure Sensor
Introduction Oxygen and air pressure measurement are used in a number of analytical and monitoring applications. When a single oxygen or pressure sensor is used it is difficult to produce reproducible and quantifiable results due to temperature and concentration dependent measurement variations. An
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palmitoleate: a novel lipid hormone as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool
Summary Markets / Needs Addressed: Insulin resistance is the key factor of a collection of metabolic disorders including Type II diabetes, atherosclerosis, fatty liver disease, hypertension and dyslipidemia. The syndrome has reached epidemic levels worldwide, with 115 million individuals in 2004 suf
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High-throughput hydrogels for cell culture in realistic tissue stiffness environments
Summary Markets/ Needs Addressed: The physical environment surrounding a living cell influences its ability to proliferate, metabolize, differentiate and survive. In particular, the stiffness of the underlying matrix greatly affects cell fate and behavior. For example, cultured stem cells undergo n
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Affinity grids in preparing single particle specimens for Electron Microscopy
Summary Immobilized metal affinity chromatography has been used extensively to isolate macromolecular complexes for structural studies. This is facilitated by the high affinity interaction between a short continuous stretch of histidine residues and nickel cations chelated by nitrilotriacetic acid (
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Generating transgenic models via in-vitro selection of embryonic stem clones:; an accelerated route to in-vivo disease models and target validation
Summary Techniques to customize and predict transgenic animal phenotype through in-vitro pre-screening would be highly advantageous. Research from the lab of Professor David Sinclair presents a new platform for generating transgenic animals using a series of in-vitro screening techniques and a libra
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HEK293T cells stably expressing Divalent Metal Transporter-1 (DMT1-1): Model System to Screen for Inhibitors of Iron Uptake
Summary A HEK293T cell line that stably expresses Divalent Metal Transporter-1 (DMT-1). DMT1 functions in transport of ferrous iron across the plasma membrane and/or out of the endosomal compartment. Thus, the cell line is an ideal tool to screen for potential iron transport inhibitors. In one examp
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Treating Diseases Associated with Oxidative Stress through the Metalothioneine System
Summary Since its initial discovery and characterization over 40 years ago by Vallee and colleagues, metallothionein has attracted a remarkable level of scientific attention due to its unique structural characteristics, its ubiquitous expression in eukaryotes, and its impressive metal binding and re
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Small Molecule Microarrays: a New Forefront in Drug Discovery
Summary Scientists from the laboratory of Professor Stuart Schreiber at Harvard University have developed a novel method of printing small molecule libraries on glass microscope slides. This method represents a next-generation platform for drug discovery. Small molecule arrays can be utilized in all
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Smaller and faster biocalorimeter for ultra-sensitive temperature sensing that helps reduce drug-development cost and risk
Summary Innovation and Advantages: We have developed a novel calorimetry device for ultra-sensitive temperature sensing associated with a chemical reaction using surface plasmon-enhanced radiation. Radiation is directed at a thin electrically conductive film having one or more small apertures. The i
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A Novel Screening Method for Assessment of Psychopathologic Disorders
Summary Background: The advancement in psychiatric genetics and clinical neuroscience is hindered by the heterogeneity of psychiatric disorders and by difficulties in defining and characterizing the phenotype under investigation. A promising endophenotype is anhedonia, the loss of pleasure or lack o
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Targeting MEF-2 for the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Disease
Summary Post-synaptic differentiation of dendrites is an essential step in synapse formation and is intrinsic to neural reprogramming following CNS trauma or neurodegenerative disease. Investigators from Harvard Medical School have discovered an important molecular switch of the transcription factor
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Transgenic Mice with Fluorescently Tagged Neuronal Mitochondria as a New Tool to Study Axonal Transport
Summary Background: Axonal transport supplies organelles to axons and synapses but little is known about how organelles are distributed among the branches of an axon to insure adequate supply of resources. This problem applies to axonal mitochondria, which play the central role in the energy metabol
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Brainbow Mice: a Technicolor Approach to map the Neuronal Circuits
Summary Understanding how the precise interconnections of neurons account for brain functions has been a preoccupation of neuroscientists for over a century. The primary obstacle that researchers have faced when attempting to map the neural circuitry of the brain has been their inability to clearly
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Enhanced Nanoparticle-Based Molecular Imaging via MRI
Summary Enhanced Nanoparticle-Based Molecular Imaging via MRI
Elevator pitch: For biotech and pharmaceutical companies who need to track drug effectiveness in the drug discovery and for MRI facilities, hospitals and physicians who seek to diagnose and treat specific diseases through molecular im
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Attenuated RNA Viruses for Vacine and Drug Delivery
Summary Research in the lab of Prof. Sean Whelan has revealed new compositions to attenuate non-segmented negative-sense RNA (nsNS) viruses. Successful attenuation was demonstrated on vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) and involved specific residue modifications that impair methylation capping in new
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Targeting FtsZ Activity Using Novel Antibacterials: Screening Assays, Small Molecule Hits, and Synthetic Pathways to Potent Natural Products
Summary The emergence of bacterial strains resistant to current drugs has prompted a renewed effort to discover new methods for fighting infectious disease. A promising new target is FtsZ, a key mediator of bacterial cell division that is highly conserved among bacteria. Because FtsZ, much like its
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Wnt1-Cre transgenic mouse model
Summary Background: The ability to generate specific genetic modifications in mice provides a powerful approach to assess gene function. As such systems allowing conditional genetic modification have been developed; for example, inducible forms of the Cre recombinase from P1 phage have been generate
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Single Cell mAB Discovery: ; Discovering Therapeutic Antibodies Invisible to Current Screening Platforms
Summary Monoclonal antibodies, including the epitope specific antibodies, represent a rapidly growing pharmaceutical segment, driven by the need for targeted therapeutics and growing knowledge of disease pathways. However, despite the high value of therapeutic mABs, discovery techniques have not adv
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Proteasome-Mediated Degradation of RISC: Lead Target for Treatment of Long-Term Memory Disorders
Summary Background: Breakthrough research by Professor Sam Kunes and colleagues at Harvard University demonstrates that degradative control of the miRNA RISC pathway underlies the synaptic pattern of protein synthesis associated with the establishment of a stable long-memory. Manipulation of this pa
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Targeting the Par-4 Protein as a Novel Approach in Depression Treatment
Summary Harvard researchers have discovered methods for identifying agents that modulate the interaction between Par-4 and the dopamine D2 receptor (D2DR). The ability to screen for this interaction may provide researchers with the ability to identify specific small molecule inhibitors of this inter
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Novel Avrainvillamide-like Compounds with Anti-proliferative Properties
Summary Avrainvillamide and stephacidin B, (a dimer of avrainvillamide) have been identified in culture media from various strains of the fungus Aspergillus. Both compounds demonstrate anti-proliferative activity, and avrainvillamide is reported to exhibit antimicrobial activity against multidrug-re
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Correlated Mutation Analysis-assisted Chimeric-Engineering/Directed-Evolution of Novel Portein/Enzyme Function
Summary Chimeric protein engineering and directed-evolution are increasingly popular methods to obtain enzymes with desired activities and substrate specificities. Chimeric-engineering goes about this by grafting select components of two homologous enzymes together (preserving activity while combina
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A Novel Class of HIV Therapeutics: Monoclonal Antibodies that Neutralize Previously Resistant HIV Primary Isolates
Summary Background: Molecular studies of the genomic organization of HIV-1 show that it encodes a number of genes common to all retroviruses, such as the gag, pol, and env genes. The env gene of HIV-1 produces a cleaved envelope glycoprotein (gp120) that is expressed on the exterior viral envelope s
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Novel Cancer Target Following HDAC Track: First Histone Demethylase offers opportunity in treating resistant cancers
Summary The invention encompasses a novel target representing a potential new avenue in the treatment of cancer and other diseases, based on interference with gene regulation. The target, LSD1 (lysine-sepcific demethylase 1), the first example of histone demethylase, is responsible for trimming meth
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Simultaneous Study of Multiple Genetic Interactions Using Multi-mutant Yeast
Summary While the Saccharomyces Genome Deletion Project succeeded in deleting many open reading frames in the S. cerevisiae genome, the possibility of multiple deletions in the same strain still represents an unmet challenge. A method has been discovered to precisely delete large numbers of genes in
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Deteremination of intracellular protein-protein interactions by colocalization with cytoplasmic inclusions
Summary Viral inclusion bodies are formed in transfected mammalian cells to enable an endogenous assay for protein-protein or nucleic acid-protein interactions. Inclusion bodies are generated by transfecting a cell with a vector encoding a protein fused with a modified reovirus protein/GFP hybrid. A
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Genetic Test for Periodontal Disease
Summary Peridontitis is a serious oral disease characterized by highly painful loss of tissue between the tooth and the gingival tissue. In the US, it is estimated that dentists perform upwards of 28.5 million periodontal procedures each year, accounting for a multibillion dollar treatment market.
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Fully-integrated 2D microelectromagnet coil arrays in silicon for magnetic manipulation and RF imaging of cells and magnetic particles
Summary The invention comprises a novel method and an apparatus to manipulate, segregate, detect and analyze biological samples on a microfluidic CMOS chip. This technique offers sub-micrometer precision and fast processing speeds for a cheap, easily accessible lab-on-a-chip system. The technology i
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Amplification of trace amounts of nucleic acids
Summary The importance of nucleic acid amplification from trace amounts of biological sample has increased with the expansion of genomic sequencing in various clinical and research-oriented applications. This invention characterizes techniques to reduce background signal experienced while cloning su
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Novel Candidates for Tuberculosis Therapy
Summary There is a need for new antibiotics that are useful against tuberculosis. Proteasomes of Mycobacterium tuberculosium are essential in enabling these bacteria to evade killing by macrophages of the infected host. Proteasome inhibitors, an emerging class of drugs, enhance the ability of host m
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Modular Conditional Knockout: Precise Temporal Control of Protein Degradation in Living Cells
Summary Polyubiquitinated proteins in eukaryotes are directed to the proteasome for degradation. It is generally accepted that proteasome-mediated proteolysis depends strictly upon ubiquitination, as disruption of that process has been observed to halt proteolytic activity of the proteasome. Researc
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Bead-based polymerase colony microarrays and nucleic acid sequencing ("Polony-FISSEQ Beads")
Summary Foundational work of Dr. George Church has enabled the production and use of replicable arrays of polymerase-amplified nucleic acid colonies (so-called "polonies") on semisolid support matrices (see Harvard Case No. 1438). The present invention extends the polony technology to provided minia
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Small Molecule Approaches to the Management of Macular Degeneration by Short-Circuiting the Visual Cycle
Summary Age related macular degeneration (AMD) affects millions of persons worldwide and is a leading cause of vision loss and blindness in ageing populations. In this disease, daytime vision (cone dominated vision) degrades with time because cone photoreceptors, which are concentrated in the foveal
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A Novel Class of Proteosome Inhibitors
Summary Harvard Medical School investigators has discovered a number of anticancer small molecules, termed ubistatins, that inhibit cell cycle machinery through interference with the ubiquitin-proteasome system. Lead ubistatins were able to arrest cyclin B proteolysis in Xenopus extract assays, and
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Multiplexing long DNA syntheses
Summary The invention enables multiplex gene synthesis in a single reaction, using very low concentrations of oligonucleotides. The method, which employs a unique temporary tagging strategy, offers significant advantages in terms of speed and economy over existing methods for building genes, and eve
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Method and Apparatus for Fluid Dispersion
Summary The invention is a microfluidic device for focusing and/or breaking fluid sections and drops. The subject fluid flows in the device's central channel as the dispersing fluid flows in the two outer channels. The outer fluid exerts pressure and viscous stresses that focus the inner fluid into
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Transgenic GFP-Rhodopsin Zebrafish Model System for Study of Retinal Disease
Summary Background: Rhodopsin is a G-protein coupled receptor that initiates the light response upon absorption of a photon in the outer segment of the retina (ROS). Rhodopsin constitutes at least 90% of the total protein in the outer segment and as a consequence the efficient transport of this mole
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Monoclonal IgE anti-ovalbumin antibody
Summary A laboratory from the Harvard School of Public Health has developed a monoclonal Ig E mouse anti-ovalbumin. This antibody is useful as a positive control in ELISA assays used to measure the level of IgE anti-ovalbumin antibodies in mouse models of asthma. Currently there is no commercial IgE
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Susceptibility to Tuberculosis 1 (sst1): Novel Target for Diagnosis and Treatment of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Summary Background: Tuberculosis is the seventh most important cause of global premature mortality and disability. Currently there are 8 million new cases and 3 million deaths annually from tuberculosis, and it is projected that a total of 225 million new cases and 79 million deaths will occur betwe
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Saframycin Assay
Summary Background: Chemotherapeutic DNA-binding compounds exert their effects, in part, by preventing DNA synthesis and initiating events that leads to apoptotic death. Despite the excellent antiproliferative activity of these compounds, though, elucidating their particular modes of action (i.e. th
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Tome-1, a novel cell-cycle gene required for mitotic entry
Summary This invention, out of Marc Kirschner's research group, concerns the discovery of a novel protein required for mititic entry. Harvard researchers have isolated and identified the protein and the gene encoding the protein. Further work has shown Tome-1's key role in the activation of cdk1/Cyc
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Elucidating Novel Protein Interactions Using MALDI-MS and a Self-Assembled Monolayer Chip
Summary The ability for real-time identification of protein binding from whole cell lysates is a challenge for protein microarrays. This invention uses MALDI-MS to analyze complex biological mixtures using a protein or small molecule microarray, which is characterized by a self-assembled monolayer o
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Animal Model of Diabetes and Obesity: Cross-bred JNK1 KO/JNK 2 KO Mice
Summary Mice with the JNK 1 and JNK2 genes knocked out were crossed with the obese mouse line (ob/ob) to create a mouse model of diabetes and obesity. These mice exhibit many of the hallmark metabolic pertubations characteristic in diabetes and obesity.
Nature: Vol 420, Nov 21, 2002, pp 333-336
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In Vivo Evolution of an RNA-Based Transcriptional Activator
Summary This invention claims a method of evolving potent RNA transcriptional regulators using a combination of directed evolution and site directed mutagenesis. Also described are specifically evolved RNA aptamers and their structures. The potency of the evolved RNA based transcriptional activators
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Transgenic mouse model for neurodegenerative disease
Summary The laboratory of Dr. Li-Huei Tsai has developed a mouse model for Alzheimers disease. They created an indicuble transgenic (Tg) mouse line overexpressing GFP tagged p25. The overexpression is restricted to the post-natal forebrain resulting in two- to three-fold incerased cdk5 activity. Thi
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Col 2A promoter Cre transgenic mice
Summary Description: Modulating gene activity on chondrocytes
Transgenic mice were generated in which the regulatory sequences for the Col2a1 gene were used to drive expression of Cre recombinase in chondrocytes. The strain initiates Cre-mediated recombination predominantly in immature chondrocyt
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Anti-Mitotic Eg5 Inhibitors for Treatment of Cancer and Inflammatory Disease
Summary Background: Molecules targeting mitosis and microtubule stability are important for the treatment of cancer. Unfortunately, the mechanism of action of these agents can cause undesirable toxicities For example, antimitotic agents such as taxol, epothilone, and vinca alkaloids produce toxicity
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DNA Memory
Summary The invention provides methods through which high-density data storage can be achieved through the use of nucleic acid molecules as recording media. It is useful as a computer memory device or in real-time or other high-throughput or multiplexed monitoring/recording of molecular and cellular
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MicroArray Spot LINEar Regression (MASLINER) software
Summary Signal intensities between samples on a microarrary typically vary by as much as three to four orders of magnitude, frustrating efforts at comparative analysis of samples assayed in parallel. At any given laser power or photomultiplier tube gain (PMTG), some signals will be below detection t
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SID Proteins Enable Gene Silencing by Systemic RNAi
Summary RNAi is an ancient gene regulatory mechanism that has been recently and nearly universally adapted to laboratory use to inhibit or knockdown expression of targeted genes. Gene targeting is usually accomplished by transfection of dsRNA or constructs that express RNA hairpin structures into ce
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Identification of Protein Ubiquitination Sites
Summary Protein ubiquitination is the most common of all postranslational modifications, and is a key process in the pathway of protein degradation. The present invention describes a method of identify protein ubiquitination sites. The process entails obtaining ubiquitinated polypeptides, digesting
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GoFish gene annotation and database query software
Summary GoFish, a genomics software tool developed at Harvard Medical School, provides methods for improved gene annotation and query of gene annotation databases. The software enables efficient analysis of large genomics data sets by allowing the user to search for genes that possess investigator-d
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Algorithm for Haplotype Construction of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism
Summary The Haplotyper software program utilizes a novel algorithm called Partition-Ligation to reconstruct individual haplotype phase information from unphased genoptype data. The Partition-Ligation method uses an ingenious Markov chain Monte Carlo approach both to construct the partial haplotypes
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Absolute Quantification of Proteins (AQUA)
Summary This invention provides methods, reagents and kits for obtaining absolute quantification of proteins and their modifications directly from cell lysates. In particular, the invention provides peptide internal standards for use in high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with online detec
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HDAC Inhibitors
HDAC Inhibitors Laura Brass Email: [email protected] Telephone: (617) 495-3067
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TreeDock protein docking software
Summary Predicting protein-protein and protein-ligand docking remains one of the challenging topics of structural biology. The main problems are (i) to reliably estimate the binding free energies of docked states, (ii) to enumerate possible docking orientations at a high resolution, and (iii) to con
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Nonhomologous Random Recombination of Nucleic Acids (Nucleic Acid Shuffling)
Summary This invention comprises methods for non-homologous random recombination (NRR) of nucleic acids, and their use to develop and select nucleic acids or polypeptides with novel structure and function. This technology is distinct from previous DNA shuffling methods in that it provides more compr
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Microcapillary Column Peptide Trap
Summary Protein detection using liquid chromatography (LC) followed by tandem mass spectroscopy has become a valuable tool for large-scale proteome analysis. Many efforts have been made to enhance throughput while maintaining sensitivity, particularly in the realm of low-volume samples. One such eff
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A Versatile Method for Accelerated Chromosome Walking and DNA Fingerprinting
Summary Background: A variety of DNA amplification methods deal with sequence analysis of an uncharacterized region adjacent to a known element. These methods include inverse PCR (iPCR), panhandle PCR, cassette ligation-anchored, and Thermal Asymmetric Interlaced PCR. Despite various degrees of succ
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A Drug Discovery Platform Using Novel Labeled Uridine Analogs: Unique moieties contribute to molecular biology research
Summary Background: Uracil is a nucleic acid base that, when bound to ribose or deoxyribose, forms uridine or deoxyuridine, respectively. Certain analogs of uridine and deoxyuridine have been synthesized and used in a variety of applications. For example, deoxyribouridine analogs containing a 5-amin
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Time and concentration warping software for RNA and protein expression data
Summary The predominant strategies for drug discovery today employ high-throughput screens and microarray-based methods that generate large data sets. Increasingly, these techniques are being used to study biological processes as a function of time and/or chemical concentration. Functionally-related
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A Novel Class of Phospholipase A2 Preferentially Expressed in Th2 Cells
Summary This invention describes the identification of a novel, low molecular weight class of Phospholipase A2 enzyme, PLA2 Group XII, that is involved in Type 2 T helper (Th2) cell differentiation and activity. This enzyme provides a potential target for therapeutic modification of Th2 activity, in
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Targeting FtsZ Activity Using Novel Antibacterials: Screening Assays, Small Molecule Hits, and Synthetic Pathways to Potent Natural Products
Summary Inhibition of bacterial septation machinery represents a promising approach for countering antibiotic-resistant bacteria. One such approach targets FtsZ, an essential protein and key mediator of bacterial cell division, which is highly conserved in prokaryotes, yet absent in the mitochondria
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Aminoglycosides Scaffolding Targeting Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria
Summary This invention encompasses key modifications to the chemistry of aminoglycosides to overcome bacterial resistance. The novel chemistry leverages: (a) the weak stereospecificity of aminoglycoside binding to rRNA, and (b) the stereospecific binding of extrinsic enzymes shown to inactivate amin
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Methods to Regulate the Duration of Th2 Activation
Summary TID1 encodes two human mitochondrial matrix localized splice variants. Expression of each of two splice variants has opposing effects on the cell's ability to respond to exogenous apoptotic stimuli. TNF and mitomycin c both trigger apoptosis via hTID1(L) expression. Both forms affect cytochr
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"Teabag" Processing: an Automated, High Throughput Method for Affinity Purification
Summary A high throughput system for protein purification has been developed, whereby a “tea-bag†structure is used to house microspheres for targeted protein binding and elution. The microspheres are compatible with any solid-phase protein purification, which includes coupling of Ni++/Histidine
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Hyperactive mutant of the Himar1 mariner transposase
Summary Mariner-family transposable elements are active in a wide variety of organisms and so are important genetic engineering tools. The Himar1 element, isolated from the horn fly, Haematobia irritans, has been shown to be active in E. coli. Hyperactive variants of the corresponding transposase ha
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Single-Cell Transcriptional Analysis with Microarrays
Summary The enormous tissue and cellular diversity of multicellular organisms poses unique challenges, such as learning the gene expression patterns associated with embryonic or neurological development. One tool scientists use to help address these problems is DNA microarrays, which help provide me
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Dominant negative inhibitor of anthrax toxin
Summary The invention enables prevention and emergency treatment of anthrax. It provides a dominant negative inhibitor (DNI) of an essential infectivity factor of B. anthracis, a potentially lethal pathogen. Animal testing has been performed, and an IND has been filed for human therapeutic use.
T
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A New p53 Cell-Based Assay
Summary Harvard researchers developed a reliable, high-throughput screening assay to identify activators and inhibitors of p53. This cell-based luminescence assay measures the level of a reporter gene product under the control of a promoter containing a p53-binding site.
P53 is a transcription fa
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Reaction Microarrays: Ultra Fast Method for Chiral Catalyst Discovery
Summary Background: While combinatorial chemistry has been successfully applied to the problem of chiral catalyst discovery, its utility is severely hampered by the lack of rapid, high-throughput screens for enantiomeric purity. Current methods require weeks to screen the products of 10,000 reaction
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Identification and Characterization of Class II HDACs: Lead Targets for Treatment of Cancer and Neurodegenerative Diseases
Summary Background: One promising target of recent cancer therapy research involves a family of proteins primarily involved in gene regulation known as histone deacetylases or HDACs. Currently there are over 15 separate clinical trials ongoing with HDAC inhibitors. A major drawback with the use of p
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Method of Detecting Compounds Utilizing Genetically Modified Lambdoid Bacterioph
Summary This invention describes a method to detet a molecule of interest in a given solution, and a method of selecting or screening for cell lines that can continuously produce desired compounds. This method uses a genetically and chemically modified lambdoid bacteriophage that has a target molecu
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Identification of a Sequence Element from p53 that Signals for Mdm2-targeted Deg
Summary Research at Harvard University has led to a novel means of protecting the cell against oncogenic tumor formation. This invention provides compositions and methods for inhibiting degradation of tumor suppressor protein p53, thereby enhancing p53-mediated growth-suppressive properties. This te
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Small Molecule Arrays: a New Forefront in Drug Discovery
Summary Scientists from the laboratory of Professor Stuart Schreiber at Harvard University have developed a novel method of printing small molecule libraries on glass microscope slides. This method represents a next-generation platform for drug discovery.
Small Molecule Printing is simple and ef
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Drug candidate for neurological stroke and septic shock
Summary Apoptosis is a genetically regulated cellular suicide mechanism that plays an important role in regulating normal development and tissue homeostasis as well as pathogenesis of diseases. This process is mediated by one of at least 14 members of the Ced-3/ICE (caspase) family of cysteine prote
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Calcipressins: Lead Targets for Autoimmune, Inflammatory, and Cardiovascular Disease
Summary The development of more selective immunosuppressive agents to mitigate transplant rejection and autoimmune diseases requires effective strategies of blocking signaling pathways in T cells. Current immunosuppressive strategies use cyclosporin A (CsA) or FK506 to inhibit calcineurin, which dep
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Inhibitors of Protein-Processivity Factor
Summary Harvard investigators have discovered that Pol interacts with a processivity factor at a site that is distinct from sites of normal interaction between known Pol family members and other cellular factors. Unlike most protein-protein interactions, the target site is uniquely suited to small m
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Bilins as anticancer agents
Summary A remarkable discovery at Harvard Medical School has led to the recognition that a naturally-occurring small molecule and analogs thereof possess potent anticancer properties through their ability to control cell differentiation. According to the invention, bilins are administered to induce
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Direct and Practical Synthetic Route to Pseudopterosins: Important Anti-Inflammatory, Anti-Pain, and Anti-Irritant Compounds
Summary Background: The pseudopterosins are a group of diterpene glycosides isolated from the Caribbean sea whip, Pseudopterogorgia elisabethae. The pseudopterosins represent an important structural class of anti-inflammatory and analgesic metabolites, and exhibit superior analgesic activity compare
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Small Molecule Therapeutic and Screening Assays for Drugs Active Against Chronic Neural Degenerative Diseases.
Summary Huntington's disease, as well as other ataxias, are caused by the abnormal expansion of nucleic acid CAG repeats that code a glutamine stretch. These repeats are found within several otherwise non related proteins. The abnormally long polyglutamine tracts are believed to trigger programmed c
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Drug screening tool for herpes antivirals
Summary Harvard Medical School researchers have developed a genetically modified herpes simplex virus that has utility as a drug screening tool. To develop this tool, Harvard researchers engineered a replication competent herpes virus that contains green fluorescent protein (GFP) fused to a viral re
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On Bead Tagging and Decoding for Combinatorial Synthesis
Summary Pharmaceutical drug discovery has been greatly impacted by the development of novel approaches to the rapid synthesis of novel compounds, including combinatorial synthesis approaches. A common problem in combinatorial synthesis is that the compounds are frequently produced as mixed pools att
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A Method to Target the Degradation of Specific Cellular Proteins
Summary In order to study the role of specific proteins in cellular processes, researchers use a variety of techniques, including gene knockout, antisense, and RNA interference technologies. These technologies are limited in their all or nothing nature - they do not permit a low level of expression.
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A Tool for the Linkage and Presentation of Multiple Protein Functional Domains
Summary Recent molecular biology research is moving beyond genetics to look at protein - protein interactions and how cells interact or communicate. These exciting areas are in need of improved tools that allow these interactions to be identified and studied.
Harvard Medical School researchers h
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The Cytoblot: a Miniaturized High-Throughput Immunodetection Screening Assay Kit
Summary Background: A major goal of drug discovery efforts is to develop successful high throughput assays. Current assays either detect specific protein-ligand interactions using recombinant proteins or study the effects of small molecules on cell proliferation. The detection of cell proliferation
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Methods and Compositions Relating to Modulation of Cartilage Growth by Modulatio
Summary Dr. Laurie Glimcher at Harvard University has recently discovered that the transcription factor NFATp plays a critical role in regulating the formation of cartilage. Mice that lack NFATp display uncontrolled proliferation of cartilage over time as well as the capacity to regenerate cartilage
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Polo-Like Kinase Polo Box: Lead Target for Cancer Therapeutics
Summary Elevated expression of mammalian polo-like kinase (Plk) 1 occurs in many different types of cancers, such as head and neck, squamous cell carcinomas, oropharyngeal carcinomas, non-small cell lung cancer, melanomas, and ovarian and endometrial carcinomas. Plk1 has also been proposed as a nove
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Geminin: a Biomarker with Significant Prognostic Potential in Cancer and Neuronal Differentiation
Summary A nuclear protein known as geminin is proposed as a broadly applicable cancer biomarker. The geminin protein was initially discovered by Kirchner et al. as an inhibitor of DNA synthesis and as a key regulator of genetic stability during chromosomal replication. Recent studies have pointed ou
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Monoclonal Antibody 2F12, Anti-ITK
Summary Monoclonal antibody to the T cell signaling protein ITK (Tyrosine kinase), developed by Heather Wilcox in Dr. Leslie Berg's lab, in the department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Harvard. These monoclonal antibodies were raised against a GST fusion protein comprising the first 26 amino acids
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High-Throughput Synthetic Platform for Natural Product Analog Libraries
Summary Background: In small molecule drug development, researchers typically develop biased libraries in which all members share a particular characteristic, such as an ability to interact with a particular target ligand or structural features designed to mimic a particular aspect of a class of nat
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Compositions and Methods for Treating Papillomavirus-Infected Cells
Summary Human papillomaviruses have been linked to widespread, serious human diseases, especially cervical carcinoma. Researchers estimate that over 90% of the 500,000 cases of cervical cancer that arise worldwide each year may be linked to HPV.
In addition to cervical cancer, papillomaviruses
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Systematic, condition-independent identification of essential genes of microorganisms
Summary Traditional antibiotics have been aimed at a small subset of cellular processes (such as cell wall synthesis, protein synthesis and mRNA synthesis) and targets (including DNA gyrase and the cell membrane). Linkage of additional genes, proteins and pathways with functions essential to microbi
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