Award Data

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Prenatal exposure to alcohol is the leading causing of birth defects in the United States. Recent studies show prevalence rates in the US may be as high as 1% of live births (Burd L, Cotsonas-Hassler, et al., 2003). This means that each year, as many as 39,000 babies are born with FAS. Many more are born with fetal alcohol effects (FAE). Early diagnosis and app ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The prescription of pharmaceuticals with teratogenic properties has increased rapidly over the past decade, with the heightened use of Accutane, thalidomide and other birth-defect inducing drugs. The CDC found the warni ng symbol in use at the time of the study on some teratogenic pharmaceuticals to be confusing and subject to harmful misinterpretation. The war ...

This Small Business Technology Transfer ( STTR) Phase II project proposes the creation of an Advanced Virtual Manufacturing Lab (AVML) for training and education on high-tech CNC machines. The key elements of the AVML are: (a) textured 3D photo-realistic virtual models of the machines and lab that include the machines' controls and moving parts; (b) semi-empirical model of the machining operation ...

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I research project advances the state of software licensing and distribution through the development of a secure software rental/subscription system. The proposed technology builds upon existing Digital Rights Management (DRM) and Electronic License Management (ELM) principles, as well as Arxan's state-of-the-art anti-tamper technology, to provide robu ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Currently about 25% of patients on hemodialysis therapy for End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) receives dialysis through tunneled central venous catheters for dialysis (CVCD). The standard anticoagulant lock for these catheters is heparin, which has no antibacterial properties. The greatest risk for ESRD patients using CVCDs access is catheter related bloodstream i ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Animal models for human disease are important tools for biomedical and pharmaceutical research. Pigs, like humans, develop hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular disease and respond to stress by releasing hormones via the HPA axis. We propose to utilize pigs more effectively and humanely, by allowing multiple experiments to be conducted simultaneously in the ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal is a software Speech Perception Assessment and Training System (SPATS) for the aural rehabilitation of adult hearing aid and cochlear-implant users. The system will assess the user's ability to identify the constituents of English syllables; that is, syllable onsets, nuclei, and codas in quiet and in background noise, and it will provide individualized ...

The project is intended to result in a comprehensive system that delivers natural warning and communication mechanisms for persons with hearing loss. The SoundAlert system offers a unique approach to enable persons who are deaf or hard of hearing to: (1) initiate and receive emergency communications; (2) receive alerts in the workplace or home environments on a single, pocket-sized device throug ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Bone marrow transplantation is an effective means to treat patients with inherited or acquired defects in blood formation. However, only 1/3 of the potential recipients can find suitable donor grafts. Human umbilical cord blood contains sufficient hematopoietic stem (HSC) and progenitor cells to engraft related recipients (even adults). A limitation to more wid ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Past experimental investigations have demonstrated that the application of HIFU (High Intensity Focused Ultrasound) to cancerous tumors results in the release of heat shock proteins and a beneficial immunizing effect. The release of proteins into the blood as a result of HIFU therapy is further demonstrated by the spike of the serum prostate specific antigen (P ...