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Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease that typically affects the lungs. Current therapies include a panel of antibiotics given over a range of 6-9 months. As a result of the expense of treatment, the extended timeframe needed for effective treatment, and the scarcity of medicines in some developing countries, patient compliance with TB treatment is very low and results in multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB). There remains a need for a faster, more effective treatment for TB.

Integrase strand transfer inhibitors (“INSTIs”) are currently in use as a component of prophylactic antiretroviral therapy for preventing HIV-1 infection from progressing to AIDS. Three INSTIs are approved by the FDA for inclusion in antiretroviral regiments: raltegravir (RAL), elvitegravir (EVG) and dolutegravir (DTG). Clinicians have already identified several HIV-1 integrase mutations that confer resistance to RAL and EVG, and additional mutations that confer resistance to all three INSTIs has been identified in the laboratory.

Researchers at the National Cancer Institute’s Biopharmaceutical Development Program recently developed massively parallel sequencing methods for virus-derived therapeutics such as viral vaccines and oncolytic immunotherapies.

The development of an effective HIV vaccine has been an ongoing area of research. The high variability in HIV-1 virus strains has represented a major challenge in successful development.  Ideally, an effective candidate vaccine would provide protection against the majority of clades of HIV.  Two major hurdles to overcome are immunodominance and sequence diversity.  This vaccine utilizes a strategy for overcoming these two issues by identifying the conserved regions of the virus and exploiting them for use in a targeted therapy. 

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG)  Immunoepidemiology Branch is seeking statements of capability or interest from parties interested in collaborative research to further co-develop a gene-based diagnostic for Hepatitis C virus (HepC, HCV).

RNA interference (RNAi) is a naturally occurring cellular post-transcriptional gene regulation process that utilizes small double-stranded RNAs to trigger and guide gene silencing. By introducing synthetic RNA duplexes called small-interfering RNAs (siRNAs), we can harness the RNAi machinery for therapeutic gene control and the treatment of various diseases.
 

Scientists at the National Cancer Institute's Molecular Targets Laboratory have discovered that Cnidarins as a novel class of highly potent proteins capable of blocking the HIV virus from penetrating T-cells. Cnidarins were found in a soft coral collected in waters off Australia's northern coast. Cnidarins can block virus fusion/entry but do not block viral attachment. In addition, Cnidarins do not have lectin-like activity and therefore possibly a unique mechanism of action.

The promise of RNA interference based therapeutics is made evident by the recent surge of biotechnological drug companies that pursue such therapies and their progression into human clinical trials. The present invention discloses novel RNA  and RNA/DNA nanoparticles including  multiple siRNAs, RNA aptamers, fluorescent dyes, and proteins. These RNA nanoparticles are useful for various nanotechnological applications.

IFN-gamma and IL-10 are cytokine signaling molecules that play fundamental roles in inflammation, cancer growth and autoimmune diseases.  Unfortunately, there are no specific inhibitors of IFN-gamma or IL-10 on the market to date.

The National Cancer Institute's Protein Expression Laboratory seeks parties interested in licensing the novel delivery of RNA to mammalian cells using virus-like particles.