Biomedical / R&D Tools

Recently developed R&D tools from UVM include a rapid, low-cost toxicology assay, a method for quantifying active protein molecules, and a feeder-free approach to culturing embryonic stem cells.

Title	Inventors	Case #	Description	Podcasts
Inhibitors of transitions & biofilms cause yeast cells to lose virulence	Johnson	176	Small molecules may be used to treat yeast infections and added to medical supplies to prevent biofilm formation.
Disposable fiber optic TIR launching system	Kennedy Warshaw	210	Disposable TIRFM slide eliminates the need for costly optics and can be used on virtually any microscope. (Also in Diagnostics)
TIRFM system features rapid, accurate autofocus and quality confirmation	Warshaw Kennedy	164	TIRFM system uses the return TIR beam as a signal source that can drive a highly accurate autofocusing system and confirm the existence of TIR.
DNA delivery system: Rip60 nucleic acid composition & uses	Heintz	19	Highly-flexible DNA delivery method inserts an entire episomal gene into a cell, including all regulatory signals in their native form.
Detection of nitrosylated proteins	Janssen-Heininger	150	Process directly visualizes NO conjugation in intact cells or fresh frozen tissues, & may lead to diagnostic tools for diseases in which NO conjugation is involved.
Acanthamoeba offers versatile, low-cost alternative to other recombinant expression systems	Bateman	155	Use of Acanthamoeba castellanii allows low-cost expression of proteins that are not well expressed in current systems. In addition, it is simple to grow, easily lysed, & produces stable cell lines that can be stored at room temperature.
Immunoassays achieve highest level of sensitivity to blood FVIII levels	Parhami-Seren	192	Assay detects FVIII concentrations significantly below 1% normal physiological concentration & can quantify FVIII in healthy individuals, hemophilia patients, & patients with anti-coagulant antibodies in whom APTT cannot be used. (Also in Diagnostics)
Diagnostic tool detects glutathionylated proteins	Janssen-Heininger	231	Method for detection of glutathionylated proteins determines their spatial location & concentration in intact cells & tissues. This may be used as a diagnostic tool or to evaluate the effectiveness of NO-delivery strategies. (Also in Diagnostics)
Fast DNA assay determines fraction of active protein molecules	Wallace/Blaisdell	264	Rapid, accurate assay using a fluorescent reporter molecule can be used to meet the frequent need for exact quantification of active protein molecules, and can be modified for use in complex DNA/protein experiments.
Aqueous solvent facilitates Drosophila toxicology assays	Rand	355	Rapid toxicology assay using Drosphila embryos can avert the ethical concerns & high costs associated with mammalian models. Non-toxic, aqueous solvent dissolves the waxy layer of the Drosophila embryo shell, allowing a suspected toxic agent or bioactive compound to contact developing embryonic cells