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This technology includes a microscopy method that reduces the speed penalty at least 1000-fold, while retaining resolution improvement. A Digital mirror device (DMD) or sweptfield confocal unit is used to create hundreds to thousands of excitation foci that are imaged to a sample mounted in a conventional microscope and record the resulting emissions on an array detector. Detection of each confocal spot is done in our proprietary software, as is the processing and deconvolution that is used for a 2x resolution enhancement.

This technology includes rhesus macaque induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) lines from multiple animals and various types of cells to establish this pre-clinical model. iPSCs are a type of pluripotent stem cell that can be generated from adult somatic cells. The iPSC technology holds great potential for regenerative medicine. Before clinical application, it is critical to evaluate safety and efficacy in a clinically-relevant animal model. We propose that non-human primate models are particularly relevant to test iPSC-based cell therapies.

Researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have developed orthotopic allograft models for pancreatic cancer that utilize low passage primary pancreatic adenocarcinoma cells or tumor fragments implanted into the cancer-free pancreata of recipient syngeneic immunocompetent mice. Tumor development in these models is more synchronized, latency is substantially shortened, and tumors develop only in one location, as pre-determined by the choice of a site for cells/tumor fragment implantation.

Current therapies for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the highest grade malignant brain tumor, are mostly ineffective, and better preclinical model systems are needed to increase the successful translation of drug discovery efforts into the clinic. Scientists at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) have developed and characterized an orthotopic genetically engineered mouse (GEM)-derived model of GBM that closely recapitulates various human GBM subtypes and is useful for preclinical evaluation of candidate therapeutics.

This technology includes an alpha-galactosidase-A knockout mouse model that can be used to study Fabry disease, an X-linked lysosomal storage disorder. Alpha-galactosidase-A is a crucial enzyme responsible for the breakdown of glycolipids, particularly globotriaosylceramide (Gb3), within lysosomes. In Fabry disease, a rare and inherited lysosomal storage disorder, mutations in the GLA gene lead to deficient or non-functional alpha-galactosidase-A enzyme activity.

This technology includes ten engineered human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) lines with reported genes inserted into safe harbor sites for use in therapy and diagnostic screening assay development as well as basic stem cell biology research. These cell lines have the potential to differentiate into all cells in the body, and theoretically can proliferate/self-renew indefinitely.

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.

Antibodies are specialized proteins produced by the immune system which target and neutralize foreign materials, such as viruses or bacteria. Antibodies have a variety of useful applications in diagnostics, therapeutics, and as research reagents. Despite their widespread use there is no standard method to produce antibodies, and currently available methods are labor and time intensive.

It is well documented in literature that activation of RXFP1 by relaxin induces: 1) up-regulation of the endothelin system which leads to vasodilation; 2) extracellular matrix remodeling through regulation of collagen deposition, cell invasiveness, proliferation, and overall tissue homeostasis; 3) a moderation of inflammation by reducing levels of inflammatory cytokines, such as TNF-a and TGF-b; and 4) angiogenesis by activating transcription of VEGF.

This technology includes monoclonal antibody was raised in mice against amino acids 703-1074 of ZFR. Antibody specificity was confirmed by immunoblotting lysates from cells depleted of ZFR using shRNAs.