Intellectual property in the form of patents acquired from advanced research is an increasingly integral part of UNMC’s strategic plan to increase revenue.
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From left, Dr. Leo Kanarsky, Leonard Agneta, J.D., Dr. Robert Lahue, Dr. Randy Fox, Dr. Thomas Rosenquist, Dr. Feng Xie, Dr. Sam Sanderson and Dr. Simon Sherman. |
Last month, UNMC and UNeMed held the fifth annual recognition reception for UNMC investigators who were awarded six patents in 2002 for their scientific discoveries. UNeMed is a company that is instrumental in transferring research discoveries and intellectual property at UNMC into the marketplace.
“Each and every patent UNMC receives should be viewed as an asset for the state of Nebraska,” said Leonard Agneta, J.D., patent attorney and director of the UNMC Intellectual Property Office (IPO). The IPO is where UNMC researchers go for help with patenting their discoveries. The staff helps them capture, evaluate and protect intellectual property so it can be licensed.
“Some universities see enormous financial benefits as a result of their patent efforts and many are taking more aggressive postures to protect and enforce their intellectual property. Increasingly, patent are being used by universities to not only generate revenue but to help position themselves with respect to their for-profit sponsors and other patent holders.”
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Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D., presents plaques to, from left, ,Dr. Sam Sanderson, Dr. Leo Kinarsky and Dr. Simon Sherman. |
Obtaining a patent is a challenging process that involves a lot of time, energy and commitment. The entire process takes several years. Not only is the inventor initially asked to describe his or her work in relatively unfamiliar terms, but must also help overcome the many arguments presented by the patent examiner.
The six UNMC patents issued in 2002 bring the total number of U.S. patents for UNMC to 105, with 10 more UNMC foreign patents in Australia, Canada, Germany and Turkey. The resulting patents are used to attract commercial partners interested in gaining rights to the protected inventions. Currently, there are eight start-up companies in the
Omaha area that are based upon UNMC technology.
UNMC Chancellor Harold M. Maurer, M.D. congratulated the awardees and presented their commemorative plaques. The six patents and their 15 inventors are:
- “Methods for Inducing Atrial and Ventricular Rhythms Using Ultrasound and Microbubbles” – Tom Porter, M.D., professor, and Feng Xie, M.D., research assistant professor, department of internal medicine-cardiology.
- “High-Affinity Response Selective C-Terminal Analogs of C5a” – Sam Sanderson, Ph.D., associate professor, Clinical Perfusion Education, School of Allied Health Professions; Simon Sherman, Ph.D., professor, and Leonid Kinarsky, Ph.D., director of molecular modeling and research assistant professor, Eppley Institute.
- “NMDA receptor Blockers for the Prevention of Atherosclerosis” – Thomas Rosenquist, Ph.D., UNMC vice chancellor for research; Dan Monaghan, Ph.D., professor, department of pharmacology, and Preston Gadson and Vincent Andaloro.
- “Genetic Assays for Trinucleotide Repeat Mutations of Eukaryontic Cells” – Robert Lahue, Ph.D., associate professor, and Richard Pelletier, Ph.D., post-doctoral research associate Eppley Institute.
- Two patents for “Methods for Volumetric Tissue Ablation” – Bob Leveen and Randy Fox, two former UNMC researchers.
“If you’re going to be a successful inventor, you need to a great idea centered on something that is usable,” said Dr. Fox, who has received five patents for his inventions at UNMC since 1995. “It takes due diligence to see something through to a successful patent, a lot of brainstorming and being realistic about what you want to invent and how you want to put it to use.
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IPO and UNeMed office staff members are, from left, Clancy Kosnjek, staff secretary III (IPO), Janice Golka, administrative tech II (UNeMed), Carla Troutman, administrative tech I (UNeMed), and Jason Nickla, tech transfer associate (IPO). Not pictured is Lora Frecks, patent paralegal, (IPO). |
“I was a part of these two projects from conception to actually treating a patient – from the seed to the product. We can’t take 50 years to make our knowledge applicable. We continually focus on how to get to where we can help improve patient outcomes.”
For more information on disclosures and patents, call UNMC’s Intellectual Property Office at 559-2170.