National Institute of Health Patent

On October 6, 1999, an announcement appeared in the Federal Register which detailed an invention owned by the National Institute of Health (NIH). This invention called, “Adenoviral Vector Expressing a SV4OT Antigen Antisense RNA” is a method to treat “all cancers that express SV40 T antigen.” The invention uses antisense technology which is a way of directly attacking SV40.

Here is an example of the NIH making available for licensing a government owned invention that treats SV40 cancers by inactivating SV40. We would suggest that this demonstrates that at least some scientists in the government are aware that SV40 is a cause of these cancers. For if SV40 were not a cause, how would its destruction treat “all cancers that express SV40 T antigen?”

The present invention describes a method of treatment of cancer by administering a replication-deficient recombinant adenovirus comprising a nucleic acid that encodes an antisense rebonucleic acid to the SV40 T antigene. In addition, it provides methods for reducing the level of expression of SV40 T antigen, induction of apoptosis, effecting cell growth arrest, reducing the levels of proto-oncogene expression, unregulating pro-apoptotic proteins, maintaining normal levels of functional p53, and maintaining normal levels of functional Rb, p107, and p130. The types of cancers contemplated by this invention include.

Federal Register: October 6, 1999 (Volume 64, Number 193)][Notices]
[Page 54336-54338]From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov][DOCID:fr06oc99-109]

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
National Institutes of Health Government-Owned Inventions; Availability for Licensing

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, Public Health Service, DHHS.

ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The inventions listed below are owned by agencies of the U.S. Government and are available for licensing in the U.S. in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 207 to achieve expeditious commercialization of results of federally-funded research and development. Foreign patent applications are filed on selected inventions to extend market coverage[[Page 54337]]for companies and may also be available for licensing.

ADDRESSES: Licensing information and copies of the U.S. patent applications listed below may be obtained by writing to the indicated licensing contact at the Office of Technology Transfer, National of Health, 6011 Executive Boulevard, Suite 325, Rockville, Maryland 20852-3804; telephone: 301/496-7057; fax: 301/402-0220. A signed Confidential Disclosure Agreement will be required to receive copies of the patent applications.

Adenoviral Vector Expressing a SV4OT Antigen Antisense RNA David S. Schrump, Z. Sheng Guo, Ishrat Wahseed (NCI) Serial No. 60/124,776 filed 17 Mar 1999Licensing Contact: Richard U. Rodriguez; 301/496-7056 ext. 287; e-mail: rr154z@nih.gov

Desired nucleic acid sequences with therapeutic potential may be introduced into mammalian cells using appropriate vectors. Antisense technology is well known in the art and describes a mechanism whereby a nucleic acid comprising a nucleotide sequences, which is in a complementary, "antisense" orientation with respect to a coding or "sense" sequence of an endogenous gene, is introduced into a cell, whereby a duplex forms between the antisense sequence and its complementary sense sequence. The formation of this duplex results in inactivation of the endogenous gene. The present invention describes a method of treatment of cancer by administering a replication-deficient recombinant adenovirus comprising a nucleic acid that encodes an antisense rebonucleic acid to the SV40 T antigene. In addition, it provides methods for reducing the level of expression of SV40 T antigen, induction of apoptosis, effecting cell growth arrest, reducing the levels of proto-oncogene expression, unregulating pro-apoptotic proteins, maintaining normal levels of functional p53, and maintaining normal levels of functional Rb, p107, and p130. The types of cancers contemplated by this invention include all cancers that express SV40 T antigen.