01-10576. Prospective Grant of Exclusive License: Bacteriophage Having Multiple Host Range

AGENCY:

National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, DHHS.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

This is notice, in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 209(c)(1) and 37 CFR 404.7(a)(1)(i), that the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Department of Health and Human Services, is contemplating the grant of a an exclusive license to practice the invention embodied in: United States Patent Application 60/220,987 entitled “Bacteriophage Having Multiple Host Range” filed on July 25, 2000, to BioPhage, Inc., having a place of business in Montreal, Quebec. The patent rights in this invention have been assigned to the United States of America.

DATES:

Only written comments and/or application for a license which are received by the NIH Office of Technology Transfer on or before June 29, 2001 will be considered.

ADDRESSES:

Requests for a copy of the patent applications, inquiries, comments and other materials relating to the contemplated license should be directed to: Peter Soukas, Office of Technology Transfer, National Institutes of Health, 6011 Executive Boulevard, Suite 325, Rockville, MD 20852-3804; Email: [e-mail]; Telephone: [phone], ext. 268; Facsimile: [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

This invention concerns bacteriophage with specificity to more than one bacterial species and the ability to make such bacteriophages. The specificity is broadened and/or changed by genetic engineering of the phage tail proteins. The phage can be used to kill pathogenic bacteria in both animals and humans. The use of phages as antibacterials may be one answer to the problem of antibiotic resistant bacteria.

The prospective exclusive license will be royalty bearing and will comply with the terms and conditions of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7. The prospective exclusive license may be granted unless, within 60 days from the date of this published Notice, NIH receives written evidence and argument that establishes that the grant of the license would not be consistent with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7.

The field of use may be limited to prophylaxis and/or treatment of bacterial infections in non-human animals and treatment and/or prophylaxis of antibiotic resistant bacteria in humans.

Properly filed competing applications for a license filed in response to this notice will be treated as objections to the contemplated license. Comments and objections submitted in response to this notice will not be made available for public inspection, and, to the extent permitted by law, will not be released under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552.

Dated: April 20, 2001.

Jack Spiegel,

Director, Division of Technology Development and Transfer, Office of Technology Transfer.