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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 17 J U N E 1 5 , 2 0 1 5 Institute in Massachusetts, to indus- try or other researchers. He holds an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, and works part-time for MMCRI, commuting from Massachusetts and working via the Internet. "Most hospitals have a technology transfer offi ce, but what is unusual for Maine Medical Center is that it doesn't have a medical school, although it does have an affi liation with Tufts University School of Medicine," says Keiller. His offi ce has a budget of $100,000 per year. e aim is to have four to fi ve new invention disclosures or ideas a year. He scours MMCRI, and Maine Medical Center in general, for even the smallest bit of intellectual property. One example is a nurse who devel- oped a staffi ng model algorithm that makes more effi cient use of time, plac- ing staff where they are most acutely needed. "We are copyrighting that," Keiller says. " ey are doing a trial on her fl oor, and then will consider using it on other fl oors." e hospital also trademarked its "Let's Go!" childhood obesity prevention program. He also looks at very early stage research, such as a new device a hospi- tal neurosurgeon is building. "We'll help him patent and license it," Keiller says. e hospital pays for the patents. A provisional patent application for a mechanical device can average $2,500 to $3,000 to prepare and fi le. What really excites him is work like Rosen's and Brooks', where dis- coveries can be licensed out and even turned into new companies. A new approach to cancer Unlike Rosen, Brooks is involved as the scientifi c founder of CryptoMedix LLC, which is registered in Harpswell but still doesn't have a physical loca- tion. Brooks describes the cancer therapeutic company as very early stage, but it already has three sets of granted patents from his former lab at the University of Southern California and at Maine Medical Center. Brooks became interested in understanding the so-called micro- environment around a tumor, also known as the extracellular matrix. Typically, cancer treatments target only the cancer tumor cells, aim- ing to kill them. But Brooks believes treatments can be more eff ective by also targeting the microenvironment surrounding the tumor, which acts almost as soil would in protecting and feeding a planted seed. One of the main structures he is studying is collagen, which comprises about 90% of the total protein in the extracellular matrix. Collagen looks like a braid. Hidden within it are structures known as cryptic epitopes. If a normal cell changes into a cancer cell, it can break the braids of colla- gen, in turn releasing the cryptic epit- opes, which act like fertilizer to make the cancer cells grow. His approach is to use the antibod- ies that can recognize the harmful epitopes and block their activity, in this case, starving the tumor cells. "I am very excited about Crypto- Medix' emerging science," says Dr. Bernd Seizinger, executive chairman of the company. He adds that based on Brooks' most recent work, there is a new link between cryptic epit- opes of collagen — the major target of CryptoMedix' anti-cancer drug candidates — and immuno-oncology, which focuses on fi ghting cancer cells by activating the cancer patients' own immune system. "Immuno-oncology is currently the 'hottest' area of cancer research and anti-cancer drug development, and is thought to represent a quantum leap in future cancer therapies, promising longer-lasting, anti-tumor eff ects," Seizinger adds. Brooks says that the fi rst approach of the company is to move one of the anti- bodies from its current tests in mice and convert it into an antibody for humans that can work as a therapy. He says that could take nine months to a year, and then he'll have to conduct tests in pre- clinical models for another six to eight months to get enough data to apply to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for an Investigational New Drug appli- cation to conduct a Phase I clinical trial, which would tell whether or not the drug candidate is toxic. It takes an average of 10 years to get a new drug to market if all goes well. Seizinger says the company is already entertaining potential seed funding for that work, and once the ongoing scientifi c studies are con- cluded and more patents are fi led, he expects later in the fall to start a broader fundraising campaign with leading biotech venture capital funds. ough his approach is unconven- tional, Brooks credits his father and his Maine upbringing for sticking to his theory. "People said I couldn't do it, so I guess that's my Maine roots," he says. "And my father taught me to step back and look around the edges." L O r i Va L i G r a , M a i n e b i z s e n i o r w r i t e r, c a n b e r e a c h e d a t LVa L i G r a @ m a i n e b i z . b i z a n d @ L Va L i G r a Building a stronger, smarter grid for Maine The Maine Power Reliability Program, a 5-year, $1.4 billion investment, is bringing long-term power reliability for Maine, and real benefits to local communities now. www.cmpco.com • Energized 6 new substations • Created as many as 3,500 jobs in Maine • Increased revenues for nearly 270 Maine businesses working on the project Learn more about this important upgrade at cmpco.com. Crews coordinate on the ground and in the air to string some of the 440 miles of transmission lines as part of the MPRP. Upgrade your career with a certificate program this summer. t Agile t Grant Writing t Lean Six Sigma t Mediation t Project Management Learn it Today. Apply it Tomorrow. (207) 780-5900 usm.maine.edu/pdp Professional Development Programs

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