Patents Examined by Alexander Kim
  • Patent number: 9765362
    Abstract: Processes, systems, and methods for producing combustible gas from wet biomass are provided. In one aspect, for example, a process for generating a combustible gas from a wet biomass in a closed system is provided. Such a process may include growing a wet biomass in a growth chamber, moving at least a portion of the wet biomass to a reactor, heating the portion of the wet biomass under high pressure in the reactor to gasify the wet biomass into a total gas component, separating the gasified component into a liquid component, a non-combustible gas component, and a combustible gas component, and introducing the liquid component and non-combustible gas component containing carbon dioxide into the growth chamber to stimulate new wet biomass growth.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2013
    Date of Patent: September 19, 2017
    Assignee: Genifuel Corporation
    Inventor: James R. Oyler
  • Patent number: 9758773
    Abstract: The invention provides mutants of DNA polymerases having an enhanced resistance to inhibitors of DNA polymerase activity. The mutant polymerases are well suited for PCR amplification of targets in samples that contain inhibitors of wild-type polymerases.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 12, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: Agilent Technologies, Inc.
    Inventors: Nancy Mckinney, Holly H. Hogrefe, Jeffrey Fox, Connie J. Hansen, Bahram Arezi
  • Patent number: 9758800
    Abstract: The invention relates to improvements in the production of butanol and butyrate by microbial fermentation, particularly to production of alcohols by microbial fermentation of a substrate comprising CO and the addition of an inorganic sulfur additive. It more particularly relates to the provision of an inorganic organic sulfur source to a fermentation system such that one or more micro-organisms convert a substrate comprising CO to butanol. In one aspect the invention uses a sulfur additive comprising inorganic sulfur compounds having a +2 to a +4 sulfur oxidation state that produces sulfur oxoanions and hydrosulfur oxoanions in an aqueous fermentation medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 4, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: Synata Bio, Inc.
    Inventors: Richard E Tobey, Toby D Allen, Peter Martin Lokken, Andrew James Heinen, Gengsheng Chen
  • Patent number: 9758553
    Abstract: Lower eukaryotic host cells have been engineered to produce glycoprotein having at least one terminal ?-galactosyl epitope. The glycoproteins are useful for the production of highly antigenic glycoprotein compositions with advantages for the production of vaccines.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2014
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: MERCK SHARP & DOHME CORP.
    Inventors: Natarajan Sethuraman, Robert C. Davidson, Terrance A. Stadheim, Stefan Wildt
  • Patent number: 9758787
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides, inter alia, Thraustochytrium and relevant methods and reagents, including engineered regulatory sequences from and/or operative in Thraustochytrid or Thraustochytrium, selectable markers useful for engineering microorganisms such as Thraustochytrids, means for mutagenizing microorganisms, novel strains produced by mutagenesis, and methods and compositions related to production of particular compounds in microorganisms.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 4, 2015
    Date of Patent: September 12, 2017
    Assignee: DSM NUTRITIONAL PRODUCTS AG
    Inventors: ShuoCheng Zhang, Roberto E. Armenta
  • Patent number: 9738692
    Abstract: A target protein is prepared as soluble protein using a recombinant protein expression system. An expression vector is used that includes (1) an expression-inducible promoter sequence; (2) a first coding sequence including a polynucleotide coding for a polypeptide that is represented by the formula (Z)n; and (3) a second coding sequence that includes a polynucleotide that codes for a target protein. A method of producing the target protein is also used that includes expressing protein using this expression vector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 3, 2014
    Date of Patent: August 22, 2017
    Assignee: JNC CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoshi Inouye, Yuiko Sahara
  • Patent number: 9725705
    Abstract: Chromatographic processes and systems for purifying a botulinum toxin from an APF fermentation medium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 20, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2017
    Assignee: Allergan, Inc.
    Inventor: Hui Xiang
  • Patent number: 9708590
    Abstract: The present invention provides the three-dimensional structure of human ?-N-acetylglucosaminidase (NAGLU) protein. This crystallographic information is useful in the identification and development of novel binding compounds of NAGLU, NAGLU mutants, for example, those associated with Sanfilippo syndrome type B (mucopolysaccharidosis III B (MPS III-B)), and other NAGLU family members (family 89 ?-N-acetylglucosaminidase) which may modulate the activity and/or stability of mutated NAGLU. Such compounds may be useful for the treatment of Sanfilippo syndrome type B (mucopolysaccharidosis III B (MPS III-B)).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Assignee: Shire Human Genetic Therapies, Inc.
    Inventors: Muthuraman Meiyappan, Michael F. Concino, Angela W. Norton
  • Patent number: 9707270
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to a method of producing analgesia in a mammalian subject. The method includes administering to the subject an omega conopeptide, preferably ziconotide, in combination with an analgesic selected from the group consisting of morphine, bupivacaine, clonidine, hydromorphone, baclofen, fentanyl 1, buprenorphine, and sufentanil, or its pharmaceutically acceptable salts thereof, wherein the ?-conopeptide retains its potency and is physically and chemically compatible with the analgesic compound. A preferred route of administration is intrathecal administration, particularly continuous intrathecal infusion. The present invention is also directed to a pharmaceutical formulation comprising an omega conopeptide, preferably ziconotide, an antioxidant, in combination with an analgesic selected from the group consisting of morphine, bupivacaine, clonidine, hydromorphone, baclofen, fentanyl, buprenorphine, and sufentanil.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: July 18, 2017
    Assignee: JAZZ PHARMACEUTICALS INTERNATIONAL LIMITED
    Inventors: David J. Ellis, George P. Miljanich, David E. Shields
  • Patent number: 9682132
    Abstract: Processes and compositions for the therapeutic treatment of pathogenic Gram-negative bacterial infection are provided whereby arginino succinate synthetase or PEGylated arginino succinate synthetase is administered to a subject to inactivate endotoxin thereby reducing the likelihood of bacterial sepsis and improving patient outcome.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2017
    Assignee: BANYAN BIOMARKERS, INC
    Inventors: Stanislav I. Svetlov, Victor Prima, Alvin Wang, Gabriel Molina, Kevin Ka-wang Wang
  • Patent number: 9683252
    Abstract: A method for producing a protein of interest on a manufacturing scale is based on integration, by homologous recombination, of the DNA encoding the protein of interest into a bacterial cell genome at a pre-selected site. The manufacturing scale production of recombinant proteins is in the fed-batch mode, semi-continuous or in a chemostat.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2008
    Date of Patent: June 20, 2017
    Assignees: BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM RCV GMBH & CO KG, SANDOZ AG
    Inventors: Gerald Striedner, Johann Huber, Daniela Keller
  • Patent number: 9670518
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to the use of pantothenate compounds as a non-genetic switch for the production of heterologous acetyl-CoA derived (HACD) compounds in microbial host cells. The invention provides genetically modified microorganisms that are more stable when stored and initially cultured under reduced pantothenate concentrations, cell culture media having reduced concentrations of pantothenate compounds, and methods of producing HACD compounds using the cell culture media and the genetically engineered microorganisms of the invention.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 9, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2017
    Assignee: Amyris Inc.
    Inventor: Adam Meadows
  • Patent number: 9663791
    Abstract: Disclosed are organisms genetically engineered to make useful products when grown on ethanol as a carbon source. The organisms are genetically engineered to produce various useful products such as polyhydroxyalkanoates, diols, diacids, higher alcohols, and other useful chemicals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2017
    Assignee: CJ Research Center LLC
    Inventors: Zhigang Zhang, Christopher W. J. McChalicher, Johan van Walsem, Oliver P. Peoples, Richard P. Eno, Thomas Martin Ramseier
  • Patent number: 9664697
    Abstract: Provided are methods of selectively labeling cells by introduction of circularly permutated GCaMP molecules which exhibit photoconversion from green to red fluorescence when exposed to blue light. The intensity red fluorescence can also be used as a calcium indicator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 13, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2017
    Assignee: New York University
    Inventors: Minrong Ai, Greg Seong-Bae Suh
  • Patent number: 9661868
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to improved expanded bed adsorption processes for isolating proteins from milk sources. In particular embodiments, the present disclosure provides a process for isolating a milk protein, such as lactoferrin, from a milk source comprising establishing an expanded bed adsorption column comprising a particulate matrix, applying a milk source to the matrix, and eluting the lactoferrin from the matrix with an elution buffer comprising about 0.3 to about 2.0 M sodium chloride.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2017
    Assignee: Mead Johnson Nutrition Company
    Inventors: Dattatreya Banavara, John D. Alvey, Joseph Andrew Peters, Juan M. Gonzalez
  • Patent number: 9657281
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides compositions, methods, kits, systems and apparatus that are useful for nucleic acid polymerization. In particular, modified polymerases and biologically active fragments thereof are provided that allow for nucleic acid amplification. In some aspects, the disclosure provides modified polymerases having lower systematic error as compared to a reference polymerase. In one aspect, the disclosure relates to modified polymerases useful for nucleic acid sequencing, genotyping, copy number variation analysis, paired-end sequencing and other forms of genetic analysis. In some aspects, the disclosure relates to modified polymerases useful for the generation of nucleic acid libraries or nucleic acid templates. In some aspects, the disclosure relates to the identification of homologous amino acid mutations that can be transferred across classes or families of polymerases to provide novel polymerases with altered properties.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: Life Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: Peter Vander Horn, Daniel Mazur, Theo Nikiforov, Mindy Landes, Eileen Tozer
  • Patent number: 9657317
    Abstract: Provided herein is an alkane-metabolizing cell that is unable to convert propionyl-CoA into methylmalonyl-CoA or 2-metylcitrate synthase. Depending on which enzymes are present in the cell, the cell can produce acrylate or a precursor for the same (e.g., propionate, 3-hydroxypropionyl-CoA, 3-hydroxypropionate, acrylyl-CoA) that can be readily converted to acrylate enzymatically (e.g., in the cell) or by chemical treatment. In one embodiment, the cell may contain a cytochrome P450 or alkane oxidase enzyme that allows the production of 3-hydroxypropionyl-CoA, which can be readily converted to 3-hydroxypropionate. In order to make such compounds, the cell may be grown in the presence of an odd-numbered chain alkane (e.g., pentane or heptane), although another odd-numbered chain alkane may be used. In another embodiment, the cell may contain acyl-CoA oxidase, enoyl-CoA hydratase, and hydrolase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: Calysta, Inc.
    Inventors: Joshua A. Silverman, Tom Purcell, Jon Edward Ness, Effendi Leonard
  • Patent number: 9657056
    Abstract: Provided herein are integrated continuous biomanufacturing processes for producing a therapeutic protein drug substance. Also provided are systems that are capable of continuously producing a therapeutic protein drug substance.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 23, 2017
    Assignee: Genzyme Corporation
    Inventors: Konstantin Konstantinov, Rahul Godawat, Veena Warikoo, Sujit Jain
  • Patent number: 9650615
    Abstract: A practical method for enzymatically synthesizing c-di-GMP with excellent productivity is provided. A diguanylate cyclase having physical and chemical characteristics (A) to (F): (A) catalytic action on reaction “2 GTP?c-di-GMP”; (B) a molecular weight of 19800±2000; (C) an optimum pH of 7.3 to 9.4; (D) an optimum temperature of 35 to 60° C.; (E) thermal stability as the remaining activity of 90% or higher after heated for 60 minutes under conditions of 50° C. and pH7.8; and (F) the presence of GGDEF (SEQ ID NO:26) domain and the lack of amino acid sequence KXXD (SEQ ID NO:23) in the i-site.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Assignee: Yamasa Corporation
    Inventors: Kaori Tanabe, Kazuya Ishige
  • Patent number: 9650651
    Abstract: This invention provides methods and systems for the production of propanol. Specifically, the methods and systems of the present invention use symbiotic co-cultures for the production of propanol from syngas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 14, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Inventors: Rathin Datta, Michael Enzien, Robert Hickey, William Levinson