Treatment and Prevention of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) using Mutant and Chimeric IL-13 Molecules

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory disease of the colorectum and affects approximately 400,000 people in the United States. The cause of UC is not known, although an abnormal immunological response to bacterial antigens in the gut microflora is thought to be involved. Present treatments for UC include anti-inflammatory therapy using aminosalicylates or corticosteroids, as well as immunomodulators and diet.

Muramyl Dipeptide as a Therapeutic Agent for Inflammation

The nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain 2 (NOD2) protein plays a key role in innate immunity as a sensor of muramyl dipeptide (MDP), a breakdown product of bacterial peptidoglycan. Bacterial peptidoglycan promotes the innate immune response through the activation of Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2), which ultimately provokes inflammation. Activation of NOD2 by MDP negatively regulates the activity of TLR2, and thus reduces inflammation.

High Relaxivity Mulitivalent Gadolinium on a Peptide Scaffold for Targeted MRI Applications in Disease Diagnosis

This technology includes a peptide containing alternating Alanine and Lys(DOTA-Gd) residues can be used to increase the MRI relaxivity of a peptide. The low molecular weight construct can be appended to proteins, antibodies and peptides to increase MRI signals. This approach offers advantages over previous dendrimeric constructs.

Human Monoclonal Antibodies That Target Plasmodium Falciparum Sporozoites

Malaria is one of the worlds deadliest infectious diseases, causing an estimated 249 million cases and 608,000 deaths annually, with children in the regions of Africa and South Asia being most vulnerable. Approx 2,000 cases of malaria are reported in the United States each year, by travelers from malaria-risk countries. Malaria is a mosquito-borne parasitic disease transmitted through the bite of infected female mosquitoes, which introduces Plasmodium sporozoites into the bloodstream of the human host.

Monoclonal Antibodies that Bind Zika Virus Envelope Protein for Zika Diagnostics and Research

Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause microcephaly and other severe birth defects. The CDC Zika MAC-ELISA (IgM antibody capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) currently used for diagnosis detects antibodies produced to fight a Zika virus infection. However, reactivity of flavivirus antibodies (from exposure to other mosquito-borne infections such as dengue or West Nile virus) can complicate the interpretation of these results.

Potency Assay for Membrane Transporter Protein-based Drugs Acting on Antioxidant, Redox, and Apoptosis Response Pathways

Description of Technology:

This technology includes a method of analyzing the potency of membrane transporter protein-based drugs acting on intracellular antioxidant and redox response pathways (and associated apoptosis pathways), wherein the drug delivery and activity is lipid associated. The present invention is a cell-based bioassay for measuring the bioactivity of drug substance and formulated drug product by determining the drug's dose-dependent inhibitory effects on 4 hydroxynonenal (4-HNE)-induced antioxidant response element (ARE) activity.

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