Patents Assigned to McGill University
  • Patent number: 5880192
    Abstract: A vinyl chloride homopolymer or copolymer composition contains a silane, a compound capable of generating free radicals and a stabilizer comprising a lead compound or an organotin compound which is effective to prevent discoloration and degradation of the homopolymer or copolymer and does not inhibit the grafting of the vinyl silane on the homopolymer or copolymer. The graft homopolymer or copolymer is exposed to moisture to cross-link it, suitably after molding or otherwise fabricating the graft polymer to form an article. There is also provided a method of moisture cross-linking poly(vinyl chloride) and vinyl chloride copolymers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 10, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 9, 1999
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: G. Ronald Brown, Ved P. Gupta
  • Patent number: 5876121
    Abstract: The temperature of an infrared radiation scattering medium which contains water, for example, biological tissue and paper, cement and clay substrates, is determined by exposing the medium to infrared radiation, measuring the reflected radiation scattered by the medium, comparing the reflected radiation with calibrated values, and evaluating the temperature of the medium from the comparison; the technique provides a means of non-invasive determination of temperature in biological tissue which has utility in medical diagnosis.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 30, 1997
    Date of Patent: March 2, 1999
    Assignees: McGill University, Universite Laval
    Inventors: David H Burns, Frederic Series
  • Patent number: 5874231
    Abstract: Method for screening for a non-hormone agent potentially useful to treat a hormone disorder. The method involves contacting a potential agent with a system containing a cellular component and a translation factor. The component and factor interact with one another in an intact normal cell in a manner responsive to the hormone to cause a modulation of translation in the cell. The method involves determining whether the agent causes a modulation of translation by the component and the factor analogous to that which occurs in intact cells in response to the hormone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 1994
    Date of Patent: February 23, 1999
    Assignees: McGill University, Ribogene, Inc.
    Inventors: Nahum Sonenberg, Arnim Pause, Joe B. Harford, Vincent J. Miles
  • Patent number: 5872011
    Abstract: A detailed three-dimensional structure for the least abundant of the general translation initiation factors in eukaryotes, eIF4E, complexed with a ligand is disclosed. The novel N-terminal truncated eIF4Es which were constructed so as to omit a significant portion of the flexible N-terminal tail of the eIF4E are also part of the present invention. In addition, the crystals of the protein-ligand complexes containing the N-terminal truncated eIF4Es are also included. Furthermore, methods of identifying antagonists of the eIF4E protein which can be used to regulate protein synthesis in cells are also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 1997
    Date of Patent: February 16, 1999
    Assignees: The Rockefeller University, McGill University
    Inventors: Stephen K. Burley, Nahum Sonenberg, Joseph Marcotrigiano, Anne-Claude Gingras
  • Patent number: 5870414
    Abstract: A method of encoding a digital signal comprising a sequence of digital words, each comprising a first portion and a second portion, comprises the steps of successively encoding respective first portions using a trellis code to produce a corresponding sequence of trellis-encoded words, using each of the trellis-coded words to select one of a plurality of subcodes of a block code, and using the selected subcode to encode the corresponding second portion of the digital word corresponding sequentially to the trellis-coded word used to select the subcode, thereby providing a sequence of codewords corresponding to the sequence of digital words.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 19, 1996
    Date of Patent: February 9, 1999
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Jean-Paul Chaib, Harry Leib
  • Patent number: 5857042
    Abstract: An optical interconnection arrangement comprises a plurality of substantially parallel optical interconnection channels. In each channel, there are an optical source, an optical receiver, a first lens and a second lens. The first lens conveys light from the source to the second lens, and the second lens refocusses the light at the receiver. Each source and the associated first lens are offset one relative to the other by a predetermined distance in a direction transverse to an optical axis of the first lens. The corresponding receiver and the associated second lens are offset one relative to the other by the same distance but in the opposite direction to the offset between the source and first lens. Each offset is equal and opposite to the corresponding offset in an adjacent channel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 1997
    Date of Patent: January 5, 1999
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Brian Robertson, Frank A. P. Tooley
  • Patent number: 5834230
    Abstract: Substituted aminostyrylpyridinium salts are fluorescent dyes having advantageous characteristics when employed as viscosity probes for the measurement of viscosity in a liquid, especially in a very small volume, for example, in living cells.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 1996
    Date of Patent: November 10, 1998
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Graham D. Darling, Seymour Heisler, deceased, Brent R. Stranix, Petra Turkewitsch, Barbara Wandelt
  • Patent number: 5827671
    Abstract: Differentially expressed Leishmania genes and proteins are described. One differentially expressed gene (A2) is expressed at significantly elevated levels (more than about 10 fold higher) in the amastigote stage of the life cycle when the Leishmania organism is present in macrophages than in the free promastigote stage. The A2 gene encodes a 22 kD protein (A2 protein) that is recognized by kala-azar convalescent serum and has amino acid sequence homology with an S-antigen of Plasmodium falciparum Vietnamese isolate VI. Differentially expressed Leishmania genes and proteins have utility as vaccines, diagnostic reagents, as tools for the generation of immunological reagents and the generation of attenuated variants of Leishmania.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 1995
    Date of Patent: October 27, 1998
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Gregory Matlashewski, Hugues Chareat
  • Patent number: 5807926
    Abstract: An oxido-reducto synthesis is carried out in a liquid medium with enzymatic transformation of a substrate with an oxido-reducto cofactor dependent enzyme in the presence of a cofactor for the transformation; the enzyme is immobilized by a support which is stationarily disposed in a flow path along which a liquid medium containing the substrate flows in contact with the support.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 11, 1996
    Date of Patent: September 15, 1998
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Irving W. Wainer, Vivian Sotolongo, Daphne Wahnon, Dean Johnson
  • Patent number: 5790537
    Abstract: A code division multiple access (CDMA) communications system comprises a plurality of CDMA transmitters and at least one reception station coupled together by a communications channel. Each CDMA transmitter encodes a digital signal with a spreading code, each bit of the digital signal being encoded by a spreading code segment comprising a multiplicity of chips. All of the transmitters transmit their respective encoded signals to the reception station asynchronously via the communications channel so as to occupy the same bandwidth. Each receiver receives the combined signals of all of the transmitters and correlates it with a selected one of the spreading code segments to detect the digital signal from the corresponding transmitter. Each receiver uses also the signal-to-noise ratios of detected signals other than its own, with respect to chip delays relative to a reference one of the signals, to suppress multiple access interference (MAI) caused by such other detected signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 15, 1996
    Date of Patent: August 4, 1998
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Young C. Yoon, Harry Leib
  • Patent number: 5763363
    Abstract: A powder of an alloy of Ni and Mg, La, Be or Li, consisting of crystallites having a grain size lower than 100 nm and a crystalline structure allowing hydrogen absorption. This powder which is preferably obtained by mechanical grinding, may consist of cristallites of Mg.sub.2 Ni, LaNi.sub.5 or of Ni-based alloys of Be or Li having a grain size lower than 100 nm. The powder may also consist of cristallites of formula Mg.sub.2-x Ni.sub.1+x, x ranging from -0.3 to +0.3, which have a grain size lower than 100 nm, and preferably lower than 30 nm. This crystalline powder is particularly useful for storing and transporting hydrogen. Indeed, it has been discovered that such Ni-based nanocrystalline powder requires no or only one single activation treatment at low temperature to absorb hydrogen. It has also been discovered that the kinetic of absorption and diffusion of hydrogen within the powder is much faster. This can be explained by the presence of a large number of grain boundaries.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 26, 1996
    Date of Patent: June 9, 1998
    Assignee: Hydro-Quebec and McGill University
    Inventors: Robert Schulz, John Strom-Olsen, Leszek Zaluski
  • Patent number: 5734041
    Abstract: Methods and intermediates for the preparation of oligomers containing diastereomerically enriched phosphorothioate linkages are disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 20, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 31, 1998
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: George Just, Zhili Xin, Eric Marsault, Yi Jin
  • Patent number: 5727391
    Abstract: An actuator develops a displacement from a force; the actuator employs active tension elements which comprise a fiber or fibers which shorten under activation, for example, shape memory alloy fibers; the fiber or fibers are entrained between opposed, spaced apart support members, typically a stack of spaced apart disks; the entrained fiber or fibers define a cage of crossing lengths of fiber in symmetrical array, typically a helicoidal array. Activation of the fibers shortens the fiber lengths producing a relative displacement of the support members which can be translated to a component which is to be displaced, and to which the actuator is operably connected, in another embodiment the active tension elements stretch under stress so that instead of an actuator there is formed a shock absorber which eliminates displacement with a force.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 16, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 17, 1998
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Vincent Hayward, Danny Grant
  • Patent number: 5723755
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an expression vector for the large scale production of a human or animal protein, which comprises a DNA construct consisting of operatively linked DNA coding for a plant promoter, a transcription terminator and the human or animal protein to be expressed. Such human or animal proteins may be selected from the group consisting of human protein C (HPC), factor VIII, growth hormone, erythropoietin, interleukin 1 to 7, colony stimulating factors, relaxins, polypeptide hormones, cytokines, growth factors and coagulation factors. The present invention also relates to the plant bioreactor and to the method for the large scale production of human or animal proteins.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 1995
    Date of Patent: March 3, 1998
    Assignees: Francis E. Lefaivre, McGill University
    Inventor: Marc G. Fortin
  • Patent number: 5714466
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method to determine the amount of ASP protein, a functional derivative or a functional fragment thereof in a plasma sample, wherein the ASP protein comprises the following amino acid sequence: ##STR1## wherein the functional derivative comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of one or more amino acid substitution, one or more amino acid deletion and one or more amino acid addition with the proviso that the functional derivative has a biological activity functionally equivalent to ASP, and the functional fragment comprises part of the ASP amino acid sequence and has a biological activity functionally equivalent to ASP; the method comprises the steps of: a) eluting the plasma sample on a column; b) measuring the amount of the ASP protein, functional derivative or functional fragment thereof present in said sample by an immunoassay with antibodies specific against one or more sites on C3a.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 22, 1994
    Date of Patent: February 3, 1998
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Allan D. Sniderman, Katherine Cianflone
  • Patent number: 5702695
    Abstract: A liquid composition comprising a transforming growth factor .beta.(TGF-/.beta. in a polyoxyalkylene block copolymer--containing liquid carrier which gels at about 37 C, promotes osseointegration of an implant in bone, when introduced into a bore in the bone, prior to the insertion of the implant in the bone.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 16, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 30, 1997
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventor: Cameron Malcolm Lang Clokie
  • Patent number: 5686733
    Abstract: Megavoltage imaging method and apparatus are provided to monitor a target volume of a patient in real time. Structure and steps are provided for generating an image on a detector (having a layer of photoreceptor material deposited on a layer of a high density substrate) by passing a photon beam first through the target volume of the patient and subsequently through the detector. The layer of the high density substrate is on the side of incidence of the photon beam for intensifying photon quanta and filter-scattered radiation from the patient induced by the photon beam. Thus, the photons impinging on the high density substrate are converted to electrons, and the images generated by the electrons subsequently traversing the photoreceptor material to cause the target volume of the patient to be monitored in real time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 29, 1996
    Date of Patent: November 11, 1997
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventors: Biagio Gino Fallone, Tony Falco
  • Patent number: 5679537
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a novel immunoassay for measurement of rheumatoid factors (RFs) avidity for correlation with rheumatoid arthritis disease activity and for the presence of the different glycoforms of IgG.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 26, 1994
    Date of Patent: October 21, 1997
    Assignee: McGill University
    Inventor: Marianna M. Newkirk
  • Patent number: 5672280
    Abstract: For the removal of heavy metal contaminants from industrial waste water, a method is proposed for preparing a dense precipitate having superior handling and disposal properties. The method comprises incremental adjustment of the pH to maintain a low saturation ratio and recycling of slurry to provide seed crystals for secondary nucleation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 1995
    Date of Patent: September 30, 1997
    Assignees: Her Majesty the Queen in right of Canada, as represented by the Minister of Natural Resources, McGill University
    Inventors: George P. Demopoulos, Janice M. Zinck, Peter D. Kondos
  • Patent number: 5671752
    Abstract: In the method and system for electromyographic analysis of a striated muscle, electromyographic signals produced by the muscle are detected by means of an array of electrodes passing through the center of the muscle depolarizing region. Each electromyographic signal comprises an electromyographic component and a noise component. The position of the center of the muscle depolarizing region is then determined by detecting a reversal of polarity of the electromyographic components of the signals. Finally, two signals of opposite polarities amongst the electromyographic signals are subtracted. The subtraction subtracts the noise components of the two signals from each other but adds the electromyographic components of the two signals together to produce an electromyographic signal of improved signal-to-noise ratio.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 31, 1995
    Date of Patent: September 30, 1997
    Assignee: Universite de Montreal/The Royal Insitution for the advancement of Learning (McGill University)
    Inventors: Christer Sinderby, Alejandro Grassino, Sven Friberg, Lars Lindstrom