Award Data

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Autoimmune diseases are thought to arise from abnormalities in innate or adaptive immune responses and most likely have both genetic and environmental components. Diagnosis of autoimmune disease is often difficult, as t he symptoms can be relatively nonspecific. Furthermore, no available blood test can accurately exclude the possibility of an autoimmune disease ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Autoimmune diseases are difficult to diagnose, as the symptoms can be nonspecific. A single test that could readily distinguish between an autoimmune and non-autoimmune disorder would allow physicians to focus efforts on the specific disease that affects the patient. This is critical for diabetes mellitus (DM), which has two subsets, Type I and Type II. The sub ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Approximately 50,000 cancer patients a year have recurrent fluid accumulation in the space between their chest wall and lung. This condition is called malignant pleural effusion (MPE). This fluid impairs breathing and worsens the quality of life in these patients. The current treatments are not ideal and include removing the fluid by repetitive needle aspiratio ...

A space-saving, economical, collapsible alternative to rigid sunshades-and particularly a replacement for beryllium sunshades-for the protection of optical coatings and heat seeking sensors on kinetic kill vehicles and similar equipment. The bellows sunshade is a self-deploying, non-toxic, titanium, all metallic, non-outgassing cylindrical shield that can expand up to twelve times its stowed leng ...

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The transcription factor CAAT enhancer binding protein beta (C/EBPbeta) is a key factor orchestrating the inflammatory response. Specifically, expression of the genes encoding the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and on IL-8 are regulated by C/EBPbeta. C/EBPbeta can be either an activator or an inhibitor of inflammation depending on the dominant isoforms produced. Our data indicate that airway epit ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The OLINDA/EXM code, which replaces the popular MIRDOSE code for calculating dose estimates in nuclear medicine applications, was given an exemption by the FDA on June 15, 2004 to be distributed as a medical device. The code will have a 3 year lifetime, and may be considered for re-release in June of 2007. The current code contains the traditional phantom types ...

The overall objective of the Phase II effort is to enhance the capability of the UCDS process to simulate and predict the characteristics of combustion instability in propulsion devices, specifically focusing on the propulsion devices used in missile defense applications. GTL shall apply proven techniques to rigorously develop a reaction wave model that is consistent with the rest of the UCDS pro ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Each year, as many as 2 million Americans develop venous thromboembolism (VTE). VTEs are blood clots in the legs (venous thrombosis) that may travel to the lungs (pulmonary embolism). It is estimated that 10-20% of VTEpatients die, and the annual direct costs are up to 10 billion. Despite advances in diagnosis and prophylaxis, anticoagulation, a 50-year-old th ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Deep brain stimulation has risen as a neurosurgical procedure of choice for patients with disabling neurological or psychiatric disorders for its abiliy to modulate improvement in the activity of certain circuits. The procedure is currently approved for treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD), essential tremor (ET), dystonia, and obsessive-compulsive disorde ...