International Patent Applications Research Articles

Persistent Current Blockers of Voltage-Gated Sodium Channels: A Clinical Opportunity for Controlling Metastatic Disease

A range of experimental and clinical data suggests strongly (i) that metastatic progression in carcinomas is accompanied (maybe even preceded) by upregulation of functional voltage-gated sodium channels (VGSCs) and (ii) that VGSC activity enhances cancer cell invasiveness. First, this review outlines the available in vitro and in vivo evidence for the VGSC expression and its proposed pathophysiological role. Second, we question the mechanism(s) whereby VGSC activity can induce such a cancer-promoting effect. We advance the hypothesis that it is the hypoxia-sensitive persistent component of the VGSC current (INaP) that is central to the phenomenon. Indeed, blockers of INaP are very effective in suppressing cancer cell invasiveness in vitro. Based upon these data, UK and international patent applications have been filed which describe the use of INaP blockers, like ranolazine ("Ranexa") and riluzole ("Rilutex"), as anti-metastatic agents. Importantly, since these drugs are already in clinical use, against conditions like cardiac angina and amyotrophic lateral scelerosis, there are no issues of dosage, unacceptable side effects or long-term use. Thus, INaP blockers have the potential to turn cancer into a chronic condition.

Transdifferentiation of MALME-3M and MCF-7 Cells toward Adipocyte-like Cells is Dependent on Clathrin-mediated Endocytosis

Enforced cell transdifferentiation of human cancer cells is a promising alternative to conventional chemotherapy. We previously identified albumin-associated lipid- and, more specifically, saturated fatty acid-induced transdifferentiation programs in human cancer cells (HCCLs). In this study, we further characterized the adipocyte-like cells, resulting from the transdifferentiation of human cancer cell lines MCF-7 and MALME-3M, and proposed a common mechanistic approach for these transdifferentiating programs. We showed the loss of pigmentation in MALME-3M cells treated with albumin-associated lipids, based on electron microscopic analysis, and the overexpression of perilipin 2 (PLIN2) by western blotting in MALME-3M and MCF-7 cells treated with unsaturated fatty acids. Comparing the gene expression profiles of naive melanoma MALME-3M cells and albumin-associated lipid-treated cells, based on RNA sequencing, we confirmed the transcriptional upregulation of some key adipogenic gene markers and also an alternative splicing of the adipogenic master regulator PPARG, that is probably related to the reported up regulated expression of the protein. Most importantly, these results also showed the upregulation of genes responsible for Clathrin (CLTC) and other adaptor-related proteins. An increase in CLTC expression in the transdifferentiated cells was confirmed by western blotting. Inactivation of CLTC by chlorpromazine (CHP), an inhibitor of CTLC mediated endocytosis (CME), and gene silencing by siRNAs, partially reversed the accumulation of neutral lipids observed in the transdifferentiated cells. These findings give a deeper insight into the phenotypic changes observed in HCCL to adipocyte-like transdifferentiation and point towards CME as a key pathway in distinct transdifferentiation programs.DisclosuresSimon C and Aguilar-Gallardo C are co-inventors of the International Patent Application No. PCT/EP2011/004941 entitled “Methods for tumor treatment and adipogenesis differentiation”.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/2193-1801-1-44) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Exploring Family Relations between International Patent Applications

In the international system for granting patents for inventions, first patent filings can be followed by subsequent filings at other patent offices within one year. Each such group of related filings constitutes a patent family. Tests are developed as to whether the observed number of first filings that leads to subsequent filings (r) is in agreement with a random process of assignment of the hits from the subsequent filings. An exact expression for the random distribution can be used for small sized data sets. Its behaviour and also the behaviour of an asymptotic Poisson approximation as well as a censored binomial distribution for r are assessed. The approach is stimulated by the Fisher-Wright model in population genetics and possible parallel applications to other biological processes are sought, such as transformations of stem cells and cancer.

Emerging Therapeutic Targets in Regenerative Medicine for the Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus: A Patent Literature Review

In recent years, the concept of preserving and/or replenishing the functional β-cell mass vital to sustain insulin output and normalized blood glucose levels has gained much interest as a therapeutic approach in regenerative medicine for the treatment of Diabetes Mellitus. Herein, we surveyed the diabetes area patent literature published in recent years to identify novel uprising therapeutic targets specifically implicated in regeneration and survival. One hundred and sixty nine international patent applications filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) (hereinafter, patents or applications) were highlighted from which 8 particular targets stood out with more than 4 patents published within the last few years. Not surprisingly, GLP-1 analogues and DPP-4 inhibitors along with GPR119 agonists and SGLT2 inhibitors were among the top ranked candidates. However, new emerging targets into the field of regenerative medicine for the treatment of diabetes include: 1) BACE-2; a protease that was recently shown to cleave the plasma membrane glycoprotein TMEM27 (also called collectrin) resulting in the inhibition of pancreatic β cell proliferation and insulin secretion, 2) GIP; a 42 amino acid incretin hormone that potentiates glucose induce insulin secretion and protect β-cells against cytokinemediated apoptosis, 3) neurturin; a neurotrophic factor capable of improving blood glucose levels in high fat diet treated animals, and 4) LRH-1, an orphan nuclear receptor that improves islet viability. These novel targets along with GPR119 are further discussed in this review.

The Emergence of Care Robotics – A Publication and Patent Analysis

Beds that change into wheelchairs, voice-based robots that autonomously serve drinks and medication or robotic suits that provide its wearer with supernatural powers - all of this sounds like science-fiction, however these seemingly futuristic devices already exist today and are being tested to support old or people with physical and or mental handicaps. These and the many other examples of robotic appliances are being developed by researchers, institutes or industrial firms around the world. Robots shall make life easier or more livable again for people restricted in their way of living – due to age, loss of physical and mental strength.Lacking a universally accepted definition for these solutions so far, we summarize them under the label care robotics. These include apparatuses that enable people affected by physical or mental handicaps to remain as autonomous as possible or to regain autonomy already lost. Autonomy concerns confined tasks (e.g. eating or holding something) or more complex activities (e.g. running stairs, interacting with others). Beside the persons directly affected, care robots support care-takers with regard to fulfilling elements of their work with the handicapped.With this study we aim to analyze the current status of this emerging field from the perspective of innovation activity levels and in order to provide answers to the following two research questions: 1. Which organizations and individuals in which countries have been and are active in research and development of care robotics? 2. How has research and development in care robotics emerged with regard to activity focus, intensity levels and cooperation?To provide answers to these questions we comparatively analyzed international patent applications and scientific publications. 564 priority patent applications were extracted from the PATSTAT database including applications up until 2009 and 2435 publications were extracted from ISI Web of Science. The analysis was conducted on country, organization (i.e. universities and firms) and individual levels. Further we applies social network analysis using the publication dataset to gain insights into collaborative research activities of actors.Our results show that over the last 30 years research and development activities focused on care robotics has constantly increased, which is reflected by the growing number of patents and publications. While universities dominate the publication landscape, patent applications are filed primarily by industrial firms. Today Japan appears to be the most active player in care robotic research. This was however not always the case. In early stages US and European organizations were pioneering care robotics developments with regard to both patenting and publishing. But for the last decades, it is almost exclusively Japanese companies that patent in this area. In addition to the “traditional” players – Japan, the US and Europe – South Korea and China have appeared on the scene recently. Still the most active individual researchers are Japanese.Overall, very few international research hubs have emerged. Among them are two Japanese organizations (ATR, AIST) and Carnegie Mellon University from the US to be mentioned.Our social network analysis further indicates that the amount of global cooperation has constantly increased over the past decades. Starting out with many disjunctive small networks or independent organizations, care robotics research networks have evolved to become highly interconnected. However, most cooperation clusters are still found within the same country. Not surprisingly compared to university collaborations in research and development, the patenting data indicates industrial collaboration activities by far less.This research is to be understood as the starting point, descriptive and based on publicly available material. Further research will be needed to better understand motives, strategies and resource allocation decisions of institutions and actors concerning care robotics. With this report we hope to raise the interest of these and others interested.

Beneficiation of coal fly ashes by oxygen chemisorption

This paper addresses the issue of unburnt carbon in fly ashes from coal-fired power stations. It has been shown that carbon-in-ash has much lower combustion reactivity than the original coal, because of the extensive thermal annealing experienced in the boiler. Thermal annealing reduces the rate of the first reaction step of which carbon combustion is composed, namely oxygen chemisorption. In the present work experiments have been carried out in order to verify if a preconditioning stage consisting of mild pre-oxidation with air is able to promote oxygen chemisorption thus increasing the combustion reactivity of ashes. Fly ashes with high LOI have been exposed to air at temperature <400°C for times up to 300min. Results show that a satisfactory extent of oxygen chemisorption can be attained at 300–400°C with 1–2h holding time. After this conditioning, samples have been tested to check their combustion reactivity by means of non isothermal thermogravimetric analysis. Additionally, combustion experiments have been carried in a purposely designed suspension reactor at temperatures up to 1000°C. Results confirm that ash pre-conditioning reduces the burn-out time of carbon in ash. The concept has been finalized into an international patent application.

&quot;The Global Competitiveness of Japan&apos;s Environmentally Sound Technology&quot; Revisited : A View Point of the International Patent Applications

&quot;The Global Competitiveness of Japan&apos;s Environmentally Sound Technology&quot; Revisited : A View Point of the International Patent Applications

China rising: international patent applications [The Data

Supercomputing power, kilometers of high-speed rail, planned nuclear power plants–this page has had a definite Sino theme lately. Here's another measure of China's tech growth: international patent applications. In 2010, China filed 56 percent more international patent applications than the year before. The number of U.S. applications, by contrast, was down for a third year in a row.

R&amp;D MANAGEMENT OF JAPANESE PHARMACEUTICAL FIRMS

We analyze how Japanese pharmaceutical firms internationalized their research and development (R&amp;D) investments during the 1980 and 1990s. In order to tap into foreign knowledge bases, they heavily invested in setting up R&amp;D centers abroad. However, knowledge transfer, evidenced by international patent applications, was very limited during the early phase of globalization. As a response, Japanese firms have shifted their R&amp;D strategy toward a better organizational integration of their foreign units.

Administrating innovation growth in Russia’s economy: A new approach

Defining the priorities of economic and scientific and technical growth is one of the main tasks of state administration. In modern conditions, solving this problem is unimaginable without the support of science. The selection of priorities itself is a complex problem that can be considered within the context of different approaches. The authors of this paper propose an original approach: from an analysis of more than 10 mln international patent applications, they have developed a technique for defining the most promising directions of scientific research, which should ensure the transition of Russia’s economy to a new technological structure.

Pendency of international patent applications and Rule 36(1) EPC

The Legal Board of Appeal had to determine whether an international patent application that did not fulfil the requirements of Article 22 of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) for entering the European phase could be considered to be a pending European patent application under Rule 36(1) EPC. This was of interest to the applicant as he wished to file a European divisional patent application. The Board found that a Euro-PCT application that had not entered the European phase is not a pending earlier European application in the sense of Rule 36(1) EPC, and thus that no European divisional patent application could be filed.

A dynamic stochastic analysis of international patent application and renewal processes

This paper formulates a dynamic stochastic model to examine the joint patent application and renewal behaviors under an international patent-protection regime. The framework makes it possible to utilize both the cross-sectional (multi-country application) and the time-series (patent renewal) dimensions of available international patenting data to estimate the private value of patent protection, and allows us to distinguish more aspects of patent returns. The evolution dynamics of the value of European patents in pharmaceutical and electronics industries are examined. Estimation results indicate that pharmaceutical patents are endowed with higher initial returns, thus their owners tend to seek patent protection in more countries than electronics patent holders. However, pharmaceutical patents become obsolete at a much faster pace than electronics patents, and consequently they have lower renewal rates and shorter lives.

Relating patenting and peer-review publications: an extended perspective on the vascular health and risk management literature

Purpose:This investigation identifies patent applications published under the international Patent Convention Treaty between July 2010 and January 2011 in three significant fields of vascular risk management (arterial hypertension, atherosclerosis, and aneurysms) and investigates whether the inventors have also published peer reviewed papers directly describing their claimed invention.Results:Out of only 48 patent documents that specifically addressed at least one of the above-mentioned fields, 15 had immediate companion papers of which 13 were published earlier than the corresponding patent applications; the majority of these papers were published by noncorporate patentees. Although the majority of patent applications (30 documents) had at least one corporate assignee, 18 came from academic environments. As expected, medical devices dominated in the aneurysm segment while pharmacology dominated hypertension and atherosclerosis.Conclusion:Although information related to hypertension, atherosclerosis, or aneurysms that was claimed in international patent applications reached the public quicker through the corresponding peer review document if one was published, more than two-thirds of the patent applications had no such companion paper in a scientific journal. The patent literature, which is freely available online as full text, offers information to scientists and developers in the fields of vascular risk management that is not available from the peer reviewed literature.

THE DETERMINANTS OF INTERNATIONAL PATENTING FOR NINE AGRICULTURAL BIOTECHNOLOGY FIRMS*

This paper examines international patent application decisions of nine agricultural biotechnology firms from 1990–2000 in Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Patent Office, Japan and South Africa. The data reveal a low frequency of international applications despite an initial United States' application, indicating very low values for patents abroad. The results indicate that invention quality plays an important role in firms' decisions to patent abroad and that a single international application is a good predictor of multiple international applications. Further, significant country fixed effects suggest wide differences in business climates and patent enforcement among countries.

Patents Law and Trips: Compulsory Licensing of Patents, and Pharmaceuticals

Harmonization of international intellectual property laws has been the object of considerable recent effort under both public international law and international trade law. The GATT Uruguay Round Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPS) resulted in significant steps toward harmonization. However, most of the harmonization efforts implemented to date have focused on procedural matters, such as international patent application procedures, and the duration of patents. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) conducted negotiations toward substantive harmonization under the auspices of the United Nations. However, WIPO negotiations, whether viewed as favorable to developing or developed nations, were routinely foiled. Conflicting policy concerns resulted in polarized approaches to IPR regulation where in developed nations sought protection of their economic interests and developing nations sought protection of their sovereign rights. Consequently, under the international public law regime, negotiations for IPR as an isolated issue failed because neither developed nor developing nations compromised. In 1994, on conclusion of the GATT Uruguay Round, regulation of international IPR shifted from the public law regime to the trade law regime. The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) incorporated significant regulation of international IPR as a requirement for parties to GATT, and was a major first step toward substantive harmonization of international IPR.

Transposon tools: worldwide landscape of intellectual property and technological developments

DNA transposons are considered to be good candidates for developing tools for genome engineering, insertional mutagenesis and gene delivery for therapeutic purposes, as illustrated by the recent first clinical trial of a transposon. In this article we set out to highlight the interest of patent information, and to develop a strategy for the technological development of transposon tools, similar to what has been done in many other fields. We propose a patent landscape for transposon tools, including the changes in international patent applications, and review the leading inventors and applicants. We also provide an overview of the potential patent portfolio for the prokaryotic and eukaryotic transposons that are exploited by spin-off companies. Finally, we discuss the difficulties involved in tracing relevant state-of-the-art of articles and patent documents, based on the example of one of the most promising transposon systems, including all the impacts on the technological development of transposon tools.

Invention and Innovation: novelty and necessity

&#x0D; “You’re a wave, met you on the shore&#x0D; Though we’ve met before;&#x0D; Keep coming back for more and more&#x0D; Each day, you brighten up my eye;&#x0D; Sparkle in your eye, star to steer me by”1&#x0D; &#x0D; As oft-unheralded offspring of necessity, inventions may appear innocuously or glaringly on our horizon, adding new color to our world. Whether emerging a brilliant sunburst topping majestic clouds, or a subtle ray filtering through shadowy groves, inventions bring light to life and have the potential to forever change the previous world order. Serendipity and inspiration play their role in sparking the creative imagination; but inventions would barely see the light of day were it not for the persistence, perspiration and dogged determination that formed them while burning the proverbial midnight oil.&#x0D; &#x0D; Actualization marks the subtle difference between invention and innovation. According to Masnick, “plenty of people or companies who ‘invented’ an idea were never able to capitalize on the idea at all. It took others who actually innovated and built off that idea to make a product that actually had an impact on the world.”2 In business terms, Invention is “the formulation of new ideas for products or processes;” Innovation is “all about the practical application of new inventions into marketable products or services.”3 Schrage hits the nail on the head when he observes that "the technical excellence of an invention matters far less than the economic willingness of the customer or client to explore it."4 He continues: “We have no shortage of good inventions. What we need are better ways to bring them to customers.”4&#x0D; &#x0D; Our journal has a long and proud tradition of encouraging scholarly dissemination of discoveries. Far from being a purely academic exercise, making such novelty public is a necessary contribution to new knowledge, skills and attitudes of our readers. Rather than coming to rest in library shelves or databases, we hope these data and devices come alive in the minds, hearts and hands of physicians and surgeons, and ultimately benefit the patients, families and communities they serve. Never mind that we can ill-afford the costly and tedious processes of international patent application, or that our innovations seem “backward” from a “developed country” perspective; we hope they will be as relevant and appropriate as they are useful to our people and loco-regional situation. "If you want to learn about the importance of "invention" over the past 300 years, talk to the lawyers. If you want to hear about the importance of "innovation," however, talk to anyone else."4&#x0D; _________________________&#x0D; &#x0D; I am pleased and proud to announce that the Philipp J Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg is now also indexed on Philippine Journals On Line (PhilJOL)available at http://www.philjol.info/ and supported by the International Network for the Availability of Scientific Publications (INASP) http://www.inasp.info/. This additional indexing service greatly increases our visibility and accessibility to such search engines as google and google scholar. Our journal is available on http://www.philjol.info/index.php/PJOHNS/index.

Embedded sensor technology for real time determination of animal lying time

Lameness in dairy animals poses an immediate and significant animal welfare and economic concern. A new sensor has been developed to monitor and record the lying patterns of dairy cows in order to benefit the study of lameness. The sensor utilizes an embedded accelerometer to measure the orientation of the hind leg of an animal based on the relative direction of the gravitational field. A microcontroller with nano-watt power technology facilitates sensor sampling, data recording and time stamping, and interfacing with external hardware systems. The interrupt triggered firmware protocol enabled low power consumption and made efficient use of microcontroller's resources. A single measurement axis, oriented with the vertical position of the animal's hind leg, was found to be sufficient in determining lying activity. In repetitive testing on three unique Holstein dairy cows, the layometer sensor recorded 100% of the lying events and had a total difference in lying time of 2.2% when compared to a human observer. It was also shown that unique sensors provided a statistically similar response when applied to the same test animal. The technology presented within this publication is protected under international patent application PCT/US2008/059234.

The pattern of international patenting and technology diffusion

The article focuses on the impact of R&D expenditure on labour productivity using international patent applications as a technology diffusion indicator. Considering the relationship between research and productivity, the pattern of international patenting reflects the channel between the source and the destination of transferred technology. Accounting for nonstationarity and cointegration, I find that patent-related foreign R&D spillovers are present for a panel of 18 OECD countries. Moreover, nonG7 OECD countries benefit more from foreign rather than domestic R&D activities. Estimates also show that there is no significant spillover effect from bilateral trade, but confirm the impact of FDI on domestic labour productivity.

Letter by Csont and Ferdinandy Regarding Article, “Biglycan Is Required for Adaptive Remodeling After Myocardial Infarction”

To the Editor: We read with great interest the article by Westermann et al1 in which the authors showed that biglycan expression was strongly increased in the myocardium after permanent coronary occlusion in wild-type mice. In the hearts of bgn −/ 0 mice 21 days after coronary occlusion, however, collagen matrix organization was impaired, and several parameters of left ventricular function were deteriorated. Furthermore, these animals showed increased mortality rates after infarction. The authors conclude that the complete absence of biglycan is deleterious and prevents the establishment of a stable infarct scar and hemodynamic adaptation, suggesting that biglycan is required for proper infarct healing. Although the observations of the authors are most valuable, the major conclusion of the authors1 is …