Patent licenses; non-exclusive, exclusive, or partially exclusive: Virosys Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,

[Federal Register: March 6, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 44)]

[Notices]

[Page 10744-10745]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr06mr03-96]

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health

Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: Protein Biopharmaceuticals for Treatment of HIV Infections

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, DHHS.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This is notice, in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 209(c)(1) and 37 CFR 404.7(a)(1)(i), that the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Health and Human Services, is contemplating the grant of an exclusive license to practice the invention embodied in United States Patent Application 60/339,751 filed December 17, 2001 and its foreign equivalents, entitled ``GP41 Inhibitor,'' to Virosys Pharmaceuticals, Inc., having a place of business in Redwood Shores, CA. The patent rights in this invention have been assigned to the United States of America.

DATES: Only written comments and/or application for a license which are received by the NIH Office of Technology Transfer on or before May 5, 2003 will be considered.

ADDRESSES: Requests for a copy of the patent application, inquiries, comments and other materials relating to the contemplated license should be directed to: Susan Ano, Office of Technology Transfer, National Institutes of Health, 6011 Executive Boulevard, Suite 325, Rockville, MD 20852-3804; E-mail: anos@od.nih.gov; Telephone: (301)

435-5515; Facsimile: (301) 402-0220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This invention relates to a chimeric molecule, NCCG-gp41, in which the internal trimeric helical coiled-coil of the ectodomain of gp41 is fully exposed and stabilized by both fusion to a minimal ectodomain core of gp41 and by engineered intersubunit disulfide bonds. NCCG-gp41 inhibits HIV envelope mediated cell fusion at nanomolar concentrations with an IC50 of 16 nM. It is proposed that NCCG-gp41 targets the exposed C-terminal region of the gp41 ectodomain in its pre-hairpin intermediate state, thereby preventing the formation of the fusogenic form of the gp41 ectodomain that comprises a highly stable trimer of hairpins arranged in a six- helix bundle. NCCG-gp41 has potential as (a) An HIV therapeutic agent that inhibits cell entry; (b) as an AIDS vaccine and; (c) as a component of a high throughput screening assay for small molecule inhibitors of HIV envelope mediated cell fusion. Antibodies have been raised against NCCG-gp41 that inhibit HIV envelope mediated cell fusion.

The prospective exclusive license will be royalty bearing and will comply with the terms and conditions of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7. The prospective exclusive license may be granted unless, within 60 days from the date of this published Notice, NIH receives written evidence and argument that establishes that the grant of the license would not be consistent with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7.

The field of use may be limited to development of protein

[[Page 10745]]

biopharmaceuticals for the treatment of HIV infections.

Properly filed competing applications for a license filed in response to this notice will be treated as objections to the contemplated license. Comments and objections submitted in response to this notice will not be made available for public inspection, and, to the extent permitted by law, will not be released under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552.

Dated: February 25, 2003. Steven M. Ferguson, Acting Director, Division of Technology Development and Transfer, Office of Technology Transfer.

[FR Doc. 03-5210 Filed 3-5-03; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4140-01-P