Patents by Inventor Dirk Prüfer

Dirk Prüfer has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20240050959
    Abstract: The invention relates to a process for obtaining natural rubber from plant material containing at least the step of milling the plant material with at least one ball mill comprising milling media. The invention further relates to the natural rubber obtained by this process and to the use of at least one ball mill comprising milling media for milling plant material when obtaining natural rubber from plant material. In the process, the ball mill has a nonmetallic lining and/or the milling media have at least a nonmetallic surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 5, 2021
    Publication date: February 15, 2024
    Applicant: Continental Reifen Deutschland GmbH
    Inventors: Carla Recker, Frank Behm, Katharina Herzog, Norbert Janczak, Carsten Venz, Dirk Prüfer, Christian Schulze Gronover
  • Publication number: 20230391894
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for obtaining aging-resistant natural rubber, to a rubber composition comprising the thus-obtained natural rubber and to the use of this composition for producing consumer goods.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 14, 2021
    Publication date: December 7, 2023
    Applicants: Continental Reifen Deutschland GmbH, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
    Inventors: Carla Recker, Katharina Herzog, Frank Behm, Norbert Janczak, Carsten Venz, Lowis-Gerrit-Boje Müller, Dirk Prüfer, Christian Schulze Gronover
  • Publication number: 20230069783
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for separating poly-isoprene and/or other apolar valuable substances from vegetable feedstock, with a first pretreatment (100) of the vegetable feedstock; a percussive, cutting and/or rubbing mechanical processing (102) of the vegetable feedstock after the pre-treatment in a wet phase, during which the polyisoprene and/or other apolar valuable substances contained in the processed raw plant materials are extracted from the vegetable feedstock; and after the mechanical processing (102), a separation (104) of the polyisoprene and/or the other apolar valuable substances from the wet phase. The invention proposes that, before or during the mechanical processing (102) in the wet phase, an adsorber material (106) be added to the ground product mixture to create a method which makes it possible to obtain polyisoprene and other apolar valuable substances from plants having a low rubber content in a technically simpler manner.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2020
    Publication date: March 2, 2023
    Inventors: Henning Zoz, Hans Ulrich Benz, Boje Müller, Dirk Prüfer, Christian Schulze Gronover, Vincent Benninghaus, Janina Epping
  • Publication number: 20230039780
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a grinding media mill (2) for obtaining polyisoprene and/or other apolar materials from raw plant materials, having a drum (4) which is peripherally closed and has a milling chamber (10) that is peripherally closed and located in the interior of the drum (4). The aim of the invention is to create a grinding media mill that enables careful processing of the raw plant materials, on the one hand, but is also variable in processing intensity and throughput time, on the other hand.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 8, 2020
    Publication date: February 9, 2023
    Inventors: Henning Zoz, Boje Müller, Dirk Prüfer, Christian Schulze Gronover
  • Publication number: 20220348941
    Abstract: Glycoproteins that are transgenically produced in mammalian cells exhibit non-human glycan structures. As in humans, this can possibly lead to immune responses, the drug manufacturing potential of these drugs is limited. On the other hand, recombinant protein production in human cells is inefficient due to the cells' poor protein yields, proliferation potential and cellular density. The present application solves these issues by providing a recombinant vertebrate cell that is comprising a non-vertebrate and/or artificial phosphatidylethanolamine-binding protein (PEBP). Compared to a parent cell line, the recombinant cells of the invention exhibit improved cell growth, protein yield and excellent compatibility with other established protein production methods. Furthermore, methods, for producing a cell line with improved vitality, protein expression and cell growth characteristics by introducing a non-vertebrate and/or artificial PEBP is given.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 21, 2022
    Publication date: November 3, 2022
    Inventors: Gundula Noll, Dirk Prüfer, Julia Kronenberg, Philip Känel
  • Publication number: 20210221980
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a composition comprising (i) a crosslinkable synthetic cis-1,4-polydiene having a cis content of at least 95% and a functional group in the terminal position, and (ii) an amphiphilic compound.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 27, 2018
    Publication date: July 22, 2021
    Inventors: Ulrich Wendler, Marlen Malke, Lowis-Gerrit-Boje Müller, Christian Schulze Gronover, Dirk Prüfer, Jacqueline Wötzel, Mario Beiner, Gaurav Gupta
  • Patent number: 10752912
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to nucleic acid sequences coding for a protein which, (1) under a respective promoter, is able to suppress or repress or delay flowering of a plant, and (2) includes the motive “NAPDIIDS” (SEQ ID NO: 10) or, in preferred cases, “VNAPDIIDS” SEQ ID NO: 67), with the exception of the nucleic acid of the gene StSP5G or a part thereof. Preferably, the nucleic acid sequence belongs phylogenetically to the FT-clade of the PEBP gene family, wherein the motive “(V)NAPDIIDS” (SEQ ID NO: 68) is in place of the “(V)YAPGW” motive (SEQ ID NO: 69) of the flowering promoting proteins AtFT and BvFT2. The invention is further directed to peptides or proteins, obtainable by expression of the nucleic acid of any of the preceding claims, vectors, comprising a nucleic acid sequence as defined above, and to plants, parts of plants, or seed of plants, the plants comprising such a nucleic acid sequence.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 25, 2020
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
    Inventors: Lena Harig, Dirk Pruefer, Rainer Fischer
  • Patent number: 10442840
    Abstract: The invention relates to artificial forisome bodies including a fusion protein of at least one SEO-F protein or an at least 50-amino acid portion thereof, and at least one additional protein or peptide, with the exception of GFP and the Venus protein, wherein in an embodiment the forisome body further includes an unfused SEO-F protein or a form of the protein having C-terminal deletions of up to 45 amino acids and/or N-terminal deletions of up to 13 amino acids, wherein the unfused SEO-F protein is selected from proteins having the property of being capable of forming homomeric forisome bodies in the absence of additional SEO-F proteins.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 15, 2019
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der Angewandten Forchung e.V.
    Inventors: Boje Mueller, Dirk Pruefer, Rainer Fischer
  • Publication number: 20190300586
    Abstract: Artificial forisome bodies include a fusion protein of at least one SEO-F protein or an at least 50-amino acid portion of an SEO-F protein, and at least one additional protein or peptide, with the exception of GFP and the Venus protein. The additional protein or peptide has a mass of at most 30 kDa, or the forisome body further includes an unfused SEO-F protein or a form of the protein having C-terminal deletions of up to 45 amino acids and/or N-terminal deletions of up to 13 amino acids, in which the unfused SEO-F protein is a protein capable of forming homomeric forisome bodies in the absence of additional SEO-F proteins.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 5, 2019
    Publication date: October 3, 2019
    Inventors: Boje Mueller, Dirk Pruefer, Rainer Fischer
  • Publication number: 20150353945
    Abstract: The present invention is directed to nucleic acid sequences coding for a protein which, (1) under a respective promoter, is able to suppress or repress or delay flowering of a plant, and (2) includes the motive “NAPDIIDS” (SEQ ID NO: 10) or, in preferred cases, “VNAPDIIDS” SEQ ID NO: 67), with the exception of the nucleic acid of the gene StSP5G or a part thereof. Preferably, the nucleic acid sequence belongs phylogenetically to the FT-clade of the PEBP gene family, wherein the motive “(V)NAPDIIDS” (SEQ ID NO: 68) is in place of the “(V)YAPGW” motive_ (SEQ ID NO: 69) of the flowering promoting proteins AtFT and BvFT2. The invention is further directed to peptides or proteins, obtainable by expression of the nucleic acid of any of the preceding claims, vectors, comprising a nucleic acid sequence as defined above, and to plants, parts of plants, or seed of plants, the plants comprising such a nucleic acid sequence.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 28, 2013
    Publication date: December 10, 2015
    Applicant: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der angewandten Forchung e. V.
    Inventors: Lena Harig, Dirk Pruefer, Rainer Fischer
  • Publication number: 20150218232
    Abstract: The invention relates to artificial forisome bodies comprising a fusion protein of at least one SEO-F protein or an at least 50-amino acid portion thereof, and at least one additional protein or peptide, with the exception of GFP and the Venus protein, wherein (a) the additional protein or peptide has a mass of at most 30 kDa, or (b) the forisome body further comprises an unfused SEO-F protein or a form of said protein having C-terminal deletions of up to 45 amino acids and/or N-terminal deletions of up to 13 amino acids, wherein the unfused SEO-F protein is selected from proteins having the property of being capable of forming homomeric forisome bodies in the absence of additional SEO-F proteins, or (c) the further protein or peptide is a portion of a second SEO-F protein, with the proviso that one of the two SEO-F proteins in its unfused form is capable of forming homomeric forisome bodies, and the fusion protein is comprised of an N-terminal SEO-F protein portion and a C-terminal SEO-F protein portion,
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2013
    Publication date: August 6, 2015
    Inventors: Boje Mueller, Dirk Pruefer, Rainer Fischer
  • Patent number: 7902331
    Abstract: A protein body derivable from Fabaceae has a reversible, anisotropic contractability such that the protein body becomes thicker perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the protein body and shorter along the longitudinal axis of the protein body when increasing a calcium ion concentration in a medium surrounding the protein body past a threshold value of 30 nM. The protein body becomes thinner perpendicular to the longitudinal axis and longer along the longitudinal axis when decreasing the calcium ion concentration below the threshold value of 30 nM. Also, the protein body becomes thicker in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis when increasing a pH value of a medium surrounding the protein body to a value above 9.5 without becoming shorter along the longitudinal axis. The protein body becomes thinner in the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis without becoming longer decreasing the pH value below 9.5.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 9, 2003
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2011
    Assignee: Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung e.V.
    Inventors: Michael Knoblauch, Dirk Prüfer