Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide an electroporation method for treating vesicles with exogenous material for insertion of the exogenous material into the vesicles which includes the steps of: a. retaining a suspension of the vesicles and the exogenous material in a treatment volume in a chamber which includes electrodes, wherein the chamber has a geometric factor (cm?1) defined by the quotient of the electrode gap squared (cm2) divided by the chamber volume (cm3), wherein the geometric factor is less than or equal to 0.1 cm?1, wherein the suspension of the vesicles and the exogenous material is in a medium which is adjusted such that the medium has conductivity in a range spanning 50 microSiemens/cm to 500 microSiemens/cm, wherein the suspension is enclosed in the chamber during treatment, and b. treating the suspension enclosed in the chamber with one or more pulsed electric fields.

Abstract: An electroporation apparatus and its novel chamber with inlet ports for mixing cells and exogenous material. The inlet ports are oriented in nonparallel to each other immediately adjacent at the same top comer of the first wall of the chamber. The mixing chamber comprises successive wall sections, two curved walls at its bottom; the first curved comer is on the same side of the chamber where the liquids enter the chamber, and directs the liquids to the second curved comer at the opposing side of the chamber, which in turn further redirects the mixing to the first curved corner. The direction of the liquid flow mixture change direction at least twice into the mixing chamber.

Abstract: An electroporation apparatus and its novel chamber with inlet ports for mixing cells and exogenous material. The inlet ports are oriented in nonparallel to each other immediately adjacent at the same top corner of the first wall of the chamber. The mixing chamber comprises successive wall sections, two curved walls at its bottom; the first curved corner is on the same side of the chamber where the liquids enter the chamber, and directs the liquids to the second curved corner at the opposing side of the chamber which in turn further redirects the mixing to the first curved corner. The direction of the liquid flow mixture change direction at least twice into the mixing chamber.

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide an electroporation method for treating vesicles with exogenous material for insertion of the exogenous material into the vesicles which includes the steps of: a. retaining a suspension of the vesicles and the exogenous material in a treatment volume in a chamber which includes electrodes, wherein the chamber has a geometric factor (cm?1 ) defined by the quotient of the electrode gap squared (cm2) divided by the chamber volume (cm3), wherein the geometric factor is less than or equal to 0.1 cm?1, wherein the suspension of the vesicles and the exogenous material is in a medium which is adjusted such that the medium has conductivity in a range spanning 50 microSiemens/cm to 500 microSiemens/cm, wherein the suspension is enclosed in the chamber during treatment, and b. treating the suspension enclosed in the chamber with one or more pulsed electric fields.

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide an electroporation method for treating vesicles with exogenous material for insertion of the exogenous material into the vesicles which includes the steps of: a. retaining a suspension of the vesicles and the exogenous material in a treatment volume in a chamber which includes electrodes, wherein the chamber has a geometric factor (cm.sup.?1) defined by the quotient of the electrode gap squared (cm.sup.2) divided by the chamber volume (cm.sup.3), wherein the geometric factor is less than or equal to 0.1 cm.sup.?1, wherein the suspension of the vesicles and the exogenous material is in a medium which is adjusted such that the medium has conductivity in a range spanning 50 microSiemens/cm to 500 microSiemens/cm, wherein the suspension is enclosed in the chamber during treatment, and b. treating the suspension enclosed in the chamber with one or more pulsed electric fields.

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for the delivery of polynucleotide vaccines into mammalian skin cells to increase T cell response and to reduce pain and discomfort due to long electric waveform application and due to muscle contractions. The method for the delivery of polynucleotide vaccines into mammalian skin cells includes the steps of: (a.) administering a polynucleotide vaccine into the skin at an administration site, (b.) applying a needle electrode to the skin in the vicinity to the administration site, and (c.) applying a sequence of at least three single, operator-controlled, independently programmed, narrow interval electrical waveforms, which have pulse intervals that are less than 100 milliseconds, to deliver the polynucleotide vaccine into the skin cells by electroporation.

Abstract: A synthetic DNA library or a member of a synthetic DNA library of antibodies or fragments of antibody molecules having heavy chain(s) and lacking light chain(s) is described wherein the CDR within variable domains are synthesized using randomly assembled trinucleotide phosphoramidites (trimer phosphoramidites) to eliminate unwanted cysteine amino acids and/or stop codons.

Abstract: Described are polynucleotide sequences that encode peptide affinity tags with the surprising property that all of the possible out-of-frame peptide sequences are identical to each other, yet are distinct from the in-frame encoded peptide tag. The present invention includes peptide affinity tags incorporated in expressed proteins. Also described are ligands and antibodies that recognize the in-frame peptides and separate ligands or antibodies that recognize the out-of-frame peptides.

Abstract: A method of binding a protein to its encoding nucleic acid is disclosed wherein the method of binding is non-covalent at one or more locations between the protein and the encoding nucleic acids.

Abstract: A safety catheter device includes a catheter hub, a housing removably coupled to the catheter hub; a needle, and a member, the housing including a radially outwardly directed projection operable to engage the interior aspect of the catheter hub and radially moveable inwardly sufficiently to disengage therefrom, the projection being held against moving radially inwardly sufficiently to disengage when the needle is in a first position with the needle distal tip exposed and being free to move radially inwardly sufficiently to disengage coincident with the needle being moved into a second position with the needle distal tip disposed in the housing.

Abstract: The invention provides a method and apparatus for the delivery of polynucleotide cancer vaccines to increase T cell response and reduce pain due to long electric waveform application and muscle contractions. The method includes the steps of: (a.) administering a polynucleotide cancer vaccine into the skin at an administration site, (b.) applying a needle electrode to the skin in the vicinity of the administration site, and (c.) applying a sequence of at least three electrical waveforms to deliver the polynucleotide cancer vaccine into skin cells by electroporation. The sequence has at least one of the following characteristics {1} at least two of the waveforms differ in amplitude, {2} at least two of the waveforms differ in width, and (3) a first waveform interval for a first set of two of the waveforms is different from a second waveform interval for a second set of two of the waveforms.

Abstract: A manual inflator having a status indicator that indicates whether a fully-charged, unspent gas cylinder has been installed on the inflator. The status indicator comprises a “single point” indicator having an indicator window that displays the color “green” when the automatic inflator is fully operational or the color “red” when the inflator is at least partially inoperable automatically due to the removal of the gas cylinder or due to the firing of the inflator resulting in a spent gas cylinder.

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide methods and compositions relating to a vaccine against prostate cancer which includes a non-human-primate PSA for administration to humans to provide an immune response against human PSA. More generally, an object of the invention is to provide methods and compositions relating to using a non-human primate xenogeneic antigen (e.g. protein) in a human, wherein, with respect to the non-human primate xenogeneic antigen that is used, there are relatively few interspecies differences between the non-human primate xenogeneic antigen and the human self antigen in order to induce an optimal immune response in the human to its native self antigen.

Abstract: A safety catheter device includes a catheter hub, a housing removably coupled to the catheter hub; a needle, and a member, the housing including a radially outwardly directed projection operable to engage the interior aspect of the catheter hub and radially moveable inwardly sufficiently to disengage therefrom, the projection being held against moving radially inwardly sufficiently to disengage when the needle is in a first position with the needle distal tip exposed and being free to move radially inwardly sufficiently to disengage coincident with the needle being moved into a second position with the needle distal tip disposed in the housing.

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for the delivery of polynucleotide vaccines into mammalian skin cells to increase T cell response and reduce pain and discomfort due to long electric waveform application and due to muscle contractions. The method includes administering a polynucleotide vaccine into the skin at an administration site, (b) applying a needle electrode to the skin in the vicinity to the administration site, and (c) applying a sequence of at least three single, operator-controlled, independently programmed, narrow interval electrical waveforms, which have pulse intervals that are less than 100 milliseconds, to deliver the 15 polynucleotide vaccine into the skin cells by electroporation.

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for the delivery of polynucleotide vaccines into mammalian skin cells to increase T cell response and to reduce pain and discomfort due to long electric waveform application and due to muscle contractions. The method for the delivery of polynucleotide vaccines into mammalian skin cells includes the steps of: (a.) administering a polynucleotide vaccine into the skin at an administration site, (b.) applying a needle electrode to the skin in the vicinity to the administration site, and (c.) applying a sequence of at least three single, operator-controlled, independently programmed, narrow interval electrical waveforms, which have pulse intervals that are less than 100 milliseconds, to deliver the polynucleotide vaccine into the skin cells by electroporation.

Abstract: A manual inflator having a status indicator that indicates whether a fully-charged, unspent gas cylinder has been installed on the inflator. The status indicator comprises a “single point” indicator having an indicator window that displays the color “green” when the automatic inflator is fully operational or the color “red” when the inflator is at least partially inoperable automatically due to the removal of the gas cylinder or due to the firing of the inflator resulting in a spent gas cylinder.

Abstract: A generally rigid molded plastic catheter hub attachment (16, 52, 74) includes one or more co-molded elastomeric gaskets (22, 58).

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide methods and compositions relating to a vaccine against prostate cancer which includes a non-human-primate PSA for administration to humans to provide an immune response against human PSA. More generally, an object of the invention is to provide methods and compositions relating to using a non-human primate xenogeneic antigen (e.g. protein) in a human, wherein, with respect to the non-human primate xenogeneic antigen that is used, there are relatively few interspecies differences between the non-human primate xenogeneic antigen and the human self antigen in order to induce an optimal immune response in the human to its native self antigen.

Abstract: An enclosed needle catheter insertion device (10) includes a catheter (12) and a needle insertion device (14) which are held together by cooperating arms (52, 53) with one or more detents (56) cooperating with a radially projecting surface (26) of the catheter hub (16). Insertion device (14) includes a guard housing (30) to enclose a needle (34) in a shielded position and a support housing (32) supporting the needle (34) for movement between a ready position, with the tip (36) of the needle (34) exposed, to the shielded position. Cooperating lock elements (47, 78) are provided for the housings (30, 32) which are positioned to define a lock actuation stage between the ready and shielded positions, whereat the needle is still within a passageway (54) defined by the cooperating arms (52, 53).