Award Data

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Between 10% and 20% of the United State population suffer from seasonal influenza each year. While most individuals recover from influenza in one to two weeks, the very young, the elderly and persons with chronic medical conditions can develop post-flu pneumonia and other lethal complications. The causative agent of influenza is influenza virus, a myxovirus tha ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): We propose to develop NeuroAutomatica, an innovative, automated neuron reconstruction software platform that provides analysis tools for automated quantitative analysis of neuronal structure. The software will provide multi-scalar information about multiple individual neurons in close proximity, including dendritic spines. Providing this innovative functionalit ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): With the considerable success of our phase 2 SBIR, we have achieved the completion of lung image analysis software that segments and thoroughly measures the lungs and their five lobes along with the airway tree. We have recently just achieved 510(k) FDA clearance for Pulmonary Workstation (PW 2.0) which now opens the door to the use of the Phase 2 software in t ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Our understanding of complex biological phenomena and disease progression has led to the realization that changes in the expression of genes underlie many of these processes. Developing reagents that can selectively alter the expression level of any desired gene has been a goal of both scientists and clinicians for years. Historically, the most common approach ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): 7-Butyl-10-aminocamptothecin (BACPT), as a water-soluble dipeptide pro-drug - BACPTDP, is a novel camptothecin analog that has increased activity in hypoxic/acidic tumor tissues, characteristic of fast growing cancers that characteristically have deficient vasculature and outgrow their blood supply. Both in vitro and in vivo studies support the potential useful ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The long term goal of this project is to develop a biomarker - the Needle Torque Test (NTT) - capable of detecting connective tissue abnormalities associated with musculoskeletal disorders. The NTT is administered by inserting an acupuncture needle into connective tissue and using the Automated Needle Torque Sensor to deliver a precise biomechanical stimulus to ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): A fast, cost-effective multispectral confocal imaging capability for high-resolution mapping in vivo will be created during this project. This new approach will be based on fiber Bragg gratings, a technology not utilized previously in biomedical imaging, and will ultimately enable the early in vivo detection and treatment of cancer at the cellular level. The c ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): We propose a commercial product composed of a computerized microscope system that allows investigators to perform automated, quantitative analyses of locomotory and other complex behaviors of freely moving C. elegans nematodes. Using the soil nematode, C. elegans, as a practical and efficient model in toxicology studies requires creation of automated technologi ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Cystic fibrosis (CF) is caused by mutations in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene. The CFTR gene encodes a chloride channel that regulates ion flow across epithelial cell membranes. Most CF patients have a mutation that deletes phenylalanine 508 (?F508) and prevents CFTR from being properly processed and delivered to cell membra ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Indigenous population, travelers and troops present in Africa and South America are clearly at risk of exposure to several arenaviruses. Several human pathogenic arenaviruses, e.g., Lassa and Junin viruses, are listed on the NIAID's Priority Pathogens and CDC's Bioterrorism Agents Lists and can cause a deadly hemorrhagic fever. No effective and safe vaccine is ...