NJMS Faculty Members Receive Research Grants from the UMDNJ Office of Patents and Licensing

The UMDNJ Office of Patents and Licensing recently awarded three NJMS faculty members grants for demonstrated technological achievement and high potential for commercialization.

Peter Frederikse, Ph. D.; Emilia Vitale, Ph. D.; and Harvey L. Ozer, M.D., were among a group that included seven other UMDNJ physicians and scientists who received grants totaling $350,000.

A panel of outside judges who have extensive industry experience and who are well versed in the field of translational research reviewed each project that was submitted for consideration. The projects were evaluated for innovation, stage of development, potential for commercialization, patent status and achievability. The New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology and the Foundation of UMDNJ collaborated with the UMDNJ Office of Patents and Licensing to create the fund for the grants, which ranged from $15,000to $37,500 each.

Following is an overview of the research that will be conducted at NJMS:

Peter Frederikse, Ph. D., "Detection of Alzheimer's Disease Bio-markers in the Eye:" Dr. Fredrikse, an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Physiology, and his collaborators developed an efficient and non-invasive method for detecting a very specific and fundamental biomarker of Alzheimer's using spectroscopy. This novel invention will greatly aid in the diagnosis and monitoring of Alzheimer's disease.

Emilia Vitale, Ph. D., "Identification of Risk Alleles for Multiple Sclerosis:" Dr. Vitale is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pediatrics. Multiple sclerosis is a debilitating chronic inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. Dr. Vitale's invention relates to the development of a two-gene test panel that will predict risk factors of multiple sclerosis. The invention will also aid in the identification of novel therapeutic selection strategies for individual patients.

Harvey L. Ozer, M.D., "Episomal Expression Vector for Mammalian Cells:"Dr. Ozer, a Professor and Director of the NJMS-UH Cancer Center, received a grant to further develop and validate novel plasmid episomal vector for use in mammalian cells in culture, termed Eplus plasmids. The research will focus on a new approach to the process researchers currently use to cause cells to create certain types of proteins. This new process will allow for the expression of multiple proteins simultaneously and in larger quantities than other protein expression systems currently in use.

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