TS-001037 — When it comes to the safety of our children, innovation never stops. There have been many improvements to the safety of devices and receptacles that can be toxic or life threatening if consumed or exposed to skin. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have incorporated this desire for security into a common household product: the spray bottle. Often filled with harmful chemicals, spray bottles remain one of the leading causes of chemical exposure injuries in children. The team at NCH has developed a “two-step authentication” spray nozzle that requires the dexterity beyond that of a small child. This dual trigger approach requires a full grip that prevents kids from accessing the contents of the spray bottle, while remaining easily usable by adults and seniors.

TS-001037 — When it comes to the safety of our children, innovation never stops. There have been many improvements to the safety of devices and receptacles that can be toxic or life threatening if consumed or exposed to skin. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have incorporated this desire for security into a common household product: the spray bottle. Often filled with harmful chemicals, spray bottles remain one of the leading causes of chemical exposure injuries in children. The team at NCH has developed a “two-step authentication” spray nozzle that requires the dexterity beyond that of a small child. This dual trigger approach requires a full grip that prevents kids from accessing the contents of the spray bottle, while remaining easily usable by adults and seniors.

TS-001036 — School can be a daunting experience. Constant motion, public speaking and a new environment can increase anxiety in children, sometimes leading to school avoidance. A team at Nationwide Children’s Hospital has developed a solution, where exposure therapy procedures are combined with modern technology can improve the school experience for people of all ages. Using a Virtual Reality (VR) Simulation, clinicians are able to use the multi-user capability to interact with and guide their patient through new environments such as classrooms, hallways and lunchrooms, as well as scenarios known to trigger increased anxiety such as public speaking or asking for help. Biofeedback components help collect data so that the clinician can adapt the experience to the user. Although targeted for school-aged children, this technology can be modified to treat any person with school or public phobia.

TS-001036 — School can be a daunting experience. Constant motion, public speaking and a new environment can increase anxiety in children, sometimes leading to school avoidance. A team at Nationwide Children’s Hospital has developed a solution, where exposure therapy procedures are combined with modern technology can improve the school experience for people of all ages. Using a Virtual Reality (VR) Simulation, clinicians are able to use the multi-user capability to interact with and guide their patient through new environments such as classrooms, hallways and lunchrooms, as well as scenarios known to trigger increased anxiety such as public speaking or asking for help. Biofeedback components help collect data so that the clinician can adapt the experience to the user. Although targeted for school-aged children, this technology can be modified to treat any person with school or public phobia.

TS-001035 — Shiny R is an open source platform that allows a framework to develop online applications. With minimal required background in coding principles, a team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital were able to display and interact with the analysis made of single-cell transcriptome. Shiny R generates visualizations that include UMAP plots and presents features of single-cell RNA and transcriptomic data without extensive training in R programming. Improvements made on this existing technology includes importing data, cell filtration, principle component analysis, clustering, dimensional reduction, merging datasets, and Graphical user interface (GUI)-based generations of gene expression plots. This significantly improves the visualization and analysis of single-cell transcriptome analysis.

TS-001034 — Salmonella is often caused by contact with animals that carry bacteria, contaminated food, or water. It has been observed that children are commonly afflicted by salmonella, and typically treatment includes fluids, medical care, and sometimes pharmaceuticals. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s hospital have identified a lead compound that includes a biofilm with anti-salmonella characteristics and acts as an inhibitor. Use of this compound with the antibiotic ciprofloxacin improves the elimination of bacterial infection in at-risk organs such as the liver and spleen.

TS-001031 — Staphylococcus aureus is a common infection that is found generally in the upper respiratory tract and on the skin. In children, this disease has a high recurrence rate within a year, and when this happens the infection can be incredibly difficult to treat. Children tend to be a high-risk population for many different types of diseases, and at this point, there is no vaccine for S. aureus as it inhibits immune responses. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have developed a cell therapy approach to treat this infection, aid in treatment for other illnesses, and prevent future infections.

TS-001030 — An endotracheal tube (ETT) acts as an aid to transfer oxygen and other inhalants to the lungs, often used in conjunction with ventilators to improve or stimulate breathing. The ETT also acts as a filter so that nothing outside of the necessary gasses are able to pass into the lungs. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have developed a novel design for the ETT that optimizes the features for use with pediatric patients. This new format alters the design of the cuff to account for the structure differences in children as well as adding a marker that is imbedded, which is used to facilitate the position of the cuff.

TS-001029 — Breast augmentation and reconstruction is a common practice, especially in those afflicted by breast cancer. One of the most common issues that comes with this process is the formation of capsular contracture. This is a direct result of the patient’s immunologic ‘foreign body’ response to the implant material, which can impact the need for significant medical interventions and diminished quality of life. The current pharmacologic treatment for breast cancer is the chemical compound known as Tamoxifen, which acts as a chemo-preventative medication for hormone sensitive breast cancers. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Ohio State University aims to localize the delivery of tamoxifen to significantly reduce the immunologic foreign body response around implant material for use in both cancer-based breast reconstruction and cosmetic procedures.

TS-000973 — A recombinant oncolytic virus encoding either an adenosine deaminase or heterologous proteins can be used in treatment of a variety of diseases, as the primary purpose of these are to maintain and develop the immune system. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have found a method that can address the delivery of adenosine deaminase into cancer cells, immune cells and the tumor microenvironment to aid in treatment for any disease or condition associated with adenosine or other associated markers.

TS-000972 — Natural Killer (NK) cells express a range of receptors to activate or inhibit certain cellular behavior to kill cancer cells. When an NK cell is deficient or dysfunctional, the efficiency of the NK cells is severely limited. VISTA is a protein sequence that activates T cells and acts as a moderator for the immune system. It has low-to-moderate expression but has been the target of study by a team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital led by Dr. Dean Lee. By removing VISTA in expanded NK cells, the inhibitory signal will be eliminated and thus resulting in an enhanced ability of NK cells to target cancers and overcome the immune-suppressive signals for improved cancer immunotherapy.

TS-000971 — The novel disease Coronavirus, also denoted as COVID-19, was recognized by the World Health Organization as an unknown etiology in December of 2019. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is a disease that presents flu-like symptoms that is caused by coronavirus (SARS-CoV). The current pandemic of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is causing tremendous economical, emotional, and public health burdens. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have reengineered a live attenuated recombinant mumps virus to create a novel SARS-CoV-2 vaccine for infants and children under the age of twelve. As vaccination is the most effective strategy to prevent infectious diseases, this development is instrumental to the outcome of the COVID-19 pandemic.

TS-000970 — As technology has adapted to the modern expectations of instant communication, Artificial Intelligence (AI)- Based Embodied Conversational Agents, also called “chatbots,” have become more relevant. They are considered a convenient and natural conversation method, which can be adapted to healthcare so that clinicians and researchers will be able to identify and address the root causes of persistent health disparities. A team at Nationwide Children’s Hospital intends to use this application to focus on the social and mental health aspects in targeted urban neighborhoods. This considers rate of poverty, opportunity, and concentrations of racial/ethnic minority populations. The chatbot app would include a customizable avatar and will be able to improve traditional screening approaches as it enables data-driven and AI supported screening for at-risk populations.

TS-000969 — Gene therapy experts at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have made significant advancements in designing optimal viral vectors for producing Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-grade viral vector products. Adeno-associated virus (AAV) serotypes such as AAV1, 2, 2.5, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9 and rh74 have properties optimized by these researchers. Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cells (CAR T) are comprised of an extracellular antigen recognition domain, intracellular T cell activation and co-stimulatory domains. These cells allow for potent and specific targeting of cancer cells, bypassing the need for antigen presentation and T cell receptor recognition. Generating CAR T cells using the process of lentiviral transduction has limitations stemming from the random integration of transgenesis, where oncogene activation, gene silencing, or negative effects on the CAR T antitumor efficacy are possible.

TS-000913 — Peptides can be used to stimulate antigen-specific T cells, allowing activated T cells to be isolated from immune individuals to be used in vaccination or treatment in others. The novel disease Coronavirus, also denoted as 2019-nCoV, was recognized by the World Health Organization as an unknown etiology in December of 2019. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is a disease that presents flu-like symptoms that is caused by coronavirus (SARS-CoV). A current process widely applicable to many pathogens uses the Miltenyi Prodigy device. In a study led by Dr. Dean Lee, his team found that this process can be adapted to SARS-CoV-2 using a specialty mix of peptides to isolate T cell immunity.

TS-000913 — Peptides can be used to stimulate antigen-specific T cells, allowing activated T cells to be isolated from immune individuals to be used in vaccination or treatment in others. The novel disease Coronavirus, also denoted as 2019-nCoV, was recognized by the World Health Organization as an unknown etiology in December of 2019. Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is a disease that presents flu-like symptoms that is caused by coronavirus (SARS-CoV). A current process widely applicable to many pathogens uses the Miltenyi Prodigy device. In a study led by Dr. Dean Lee, his team found that this process can be adapted to SARS-CoV-2 using a specialty mix of peptides to isolate T cell immunity.

TS-000912 — There are a few prominent diseases that affect the kidney, such as nephrotic syndrome and diabetic nephropathy. To treat Type II diabetes, there is a readily available pharmaceutical known as pioglitazone that is often used in conjuncture with other compounds to reduce proteinuria in patients with kidney diseases. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have developed a novel compound to act as a treatment agent in cases of kidney disease. The new design has similar insulin sensitizing effects as pioglitazone as well as its ability to reduce proteinuria. This compound, titled GQ-16, has similar efficacy as traditional Type II diabetes drugs and acts as a new indication for nephrotic syndrome or kidney diseases, with a significant reduction in side effects such as weight gain or adipogenesis.

TS-000912 — There are a few prominent diseases that affect the kidney, such as nephrotic syndrome and diabetic nephropathy. To treat Type II diabetes, there is a readily available pharmaceutical known as pioglitazone that is often used in conjuncture with other compounds to reduce proteinuria in patients with kidney diseases. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have developed a novel compound to act as a treatment agent in cases of kidney disease. The new design has similar insulin sensitizing effects as pioglitazone as well as its ability to reduce proteinuria. This compound, titled GQ-16, has similar efficacy as traditional Type II diabetes drugs and acts as a new indication for nephrotic syndrome or kidney diseases, with a significant reduction in side effects such as weight gain or adipogenesis.

TS-000911 — Gene therapy experts at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have made significant advancements in designing optimal viral vectors for producing Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-grade viral vector products. Adeno-associated virus (AAV) serotypes such as AAV1, 2, 2.5, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9 and rh74 have properties optimized by these researchers. A research team led by Dr. Kristin Heller has developed two AAV cloning backbones that use a stuffer sequence so that the plasmid backbone is oversized, thus reducing the frequency of packaging during AAV manufacturing. Using multiple cloning sites and optimized Inverted Terminal Repeat (ITR) regions, this process improves the AAV processes in the public domain. These cloning backbones include Kanamycin and Ampicillin resistance genes.

TS-000911 — Gene therapy experts at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have made significant advancements in designing optimal viral vectors for producing Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-grade viral vector products. Adeno-associated virus (AAV) serotypes such as AAV1, 2, 2.5, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9 and rh74 have properties optimized by these researchers. A research team led by Dr. Kristin Heller has developed two AAV cloning backbones that use a stuffer sequence so that the plasmid backbone is oversized, thus reducing the frequency of packaging during AAV manufacturing. Using multiple cloning sites and optimized Inverted Terminal Repeat (ITR) regions, this process improves the AAV processes in the public domain. These cloning backbones include Kanamycin and Ampicillin resistance genes.

TS-000907 — Being able to detect the early onset of diseases and identify risk factors make early intervention and risk management possible. With the increasing volume of Electronic Health Records (EHR), many deep learning models have been developed and applied to various healthcare tasks, such as disease predictions, phenotyping, embedded learning and future cost prediction. A team of researchers at Nationwide Children’s Hospital has created a deep learning-based model for future medical risk prediction, named the Multilevel Self-Attention Model (MSAM) that offers a series of improvements to existing processes. The capabilities of MSAM include capturing the temporal information within medical claims, advancing deep learning approaches for the underlying relationships between medical codes, and providing clinically meaningful interpretations.

TS-000906 — Natural Killer (NK) cells express a range of receptors to activate or inhibit certain cellular behavior to kill cancer cells. Additionally, CD38 presenting cells have been used as a marker for cancer stem cells, specifically those that often avoid recognition when common surface antigen processes are used. CARK1 is a phosphorylate that impacts cell growth and development. A team led by Dr. Dean Lee has developed CD38k0 NK cells that they combine with CARK1 to create a series of monoclonal antibodies that targets cancer cells. Along with better cell targeting, this combination improves the efficacy of treatment in comparison to the CAR, NK, or CD38 antibodies as independent components.

TS-000906 — Natural Killer (NK) cells express a range of receptors to activate or inhibit certain cellular behavior to kill cancer cells. Additionally, CD38 presenting cells have been used as a marker for cancer stem cells, specifically those that often avoid recognition when common surface antigen processes are used. CARK1 is a phosphorylate that impacts cell growth and development. A team led by Dr. Dean Lee has developed CD38k0 NK cells that they combine with CARK1 to create a series of monoclonal antibodies that targets cancer cells. Along with better cell targeting, this combination improves the efficacy of treatment in comparison to the CAR, NK, or CD38 antibodies as independent components.

TS-000878 — Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cells (CAR T) are comprised of an extracellular antigen recognition domain, intracellular T cell activation and co-stimulatory domains. These cells allow for potent and specific targeting of cancer cells, bypassing the need for antigen presentation and T cell receptor recognition. CAR T is mostly generated using lentiviral transduction of autologous T cells in conjunction with non-specific expansion in cell culture. CAR T-specific stimulation has been described using genetically engineered artificial antigen presenting cells (aAPCs). A strategy designed by Dr. Dean Lee and his team can select and expand any CAR T cell product in culture. This allows for safely infused exosomes and other membrane particles derived from aAPCs to also be envisioned as a pharmacologic, given to patients receiving CAR T to promote in vivo expansion and persistence of said cells. This approach could also be applied to antigen-specific TCR stimulation by modifying the aAPC to express the appropriate MCH-peptide as the antigen.

TS-000878 — Chimeric Antigen Receptor T cells (CAR T) are comprised of an extracellular antigen recognition domain, intracellular T cell activation and co-stimulatory domains. These cells allow for potent and specific targeting of cancer cells, bypassing the need for antigen presentation and T cell receptor recognition. CAR T is mostly generated using lentiviral transduction of autologous T cells in conjunction with non-specific expansion in cell culture. CAR T-specific stimulation has been described using genetically engineered artificial antigen presenting cells (aAPCs). A strategy designed by Dr. Dean Lee and his team can select and expand any CAR T cell product in culture. This allows for safely infused exosomes and other membrane particles derived from aAPCs to also be envisioned as a pharmacologic, given to patients receiving CAR T to promote in vivo expansion and persistence of said cells. This approach could also be applied to antigen-specific TCR stimulation by modifying the aAPC to express the appropriate MCH-peptide as the antigen.

TS-000877 — Tracking mood regularly after a diagnosis provides data essential to the evaluation of treatment effectiveness. This includes medications, dosages, and alternative methods such as non-pharmalogical management. At this point, these assessments are only made in clinical visits that can have large spans of time between appointments and in a setting that can skew data, as it is primarily self-reported or clinically observed. A team at Nationwide Children’s Hospital have developed an app in phases that can generate objective mood assessment using vocal recordings. This app is remote, making it accessible in both a home and clinical setting. It would be useful as a screening tool and as an assessment tool, allowing it to track the progress made through therapeutic application. It connects patients with diagnosed mood disorders.

TS-000874 — Currently, the process to perform analysis of proliferation and migration rates of cells in wound healing arrays is very hands-on and time consuming. The Wound Healing Automated Analysis Pipeline (WHAAP) is a fully automated pipeline that can track cell migration, proliferation, and density or confluency of a live culture. After setting the threshold for cell recognition, it enables the user to effortlessly analyze proliferation and migration rates of cells in wound healing assays. Users can specify both test and control groups, as well as replicate as many experimental trials as desired, all stemming from an input of microscopic images taken at regular intervals. Each set is evaluated with unbiased image recognition held at a constant state. The data collected is used for a variety of calculations and estimations. WHAAP efficiently conducts all stages of analysis without requiring the user to possess any advanced knowledge of computer programming or biology. The output of this program is publication-ready, which only requires the user to interpret the data provided quickly and efficiently.

TS-000874 — Currently, the process to perform analysis of proliferation and migration rates of cells in wound healing arrays is very hands-on and time consuming. The Wound Healing Automated Analysis Pipeline (WHAAP) is a fully automated pipeline that can track cell migration, proliferation, and density or confluency of a live culture. After setting the threshold for cell recognition, it enables the user to effortlessly analyze proliferation and migration rates of cells in wound healing assays. Users can specify both test and control groups, as well as replicate as many experimental trials as desired, all stemming from an input of microscopic images taken at regular intervals. Each set is evaluated with unbiased image recognition held at a constant state. The data collected is used for a variety of calculations and estimations. WHAAP efficiently conducts all stages of analysis without requiring the user to possess any advanced knowledge of computer programming or biology. The output of this program is publication-ready, which only requires the user to interpret the data provided quickly and efficiently.

TS-000873 — The current timeframe required for current Good Manufacturing Product (cGMP) validation and approval is significant. The delay between development and approval is time intensive and the advancements that can improve treatment can be outdated by the time they reach the market. Genetic modifications would lead to restarting the production and approval process and delaying the introduction of the entry into human trials. Dr. Kevin Cassady and his team found that combinations of oncolytic viruses (OV) can be combined using current, approved cGMP stocks can be employed effectively and subsequently saving time that would have been spent on re-engineering, production, and validation, as well as the expense associated. The clinical outcome would be improved as this new process allows for a more rapid and cost-effective approach to clinical translation using existing stock of virus.

TS-000873 — The current timeframe required for current Good Manufacturing Product (cGMP) validation and approval is significant. The delay between development and approval is time intensive and the advancements that can improve treatment can be outdated by the time they reach the market. Genetic modifications would lead to restarting the production and approval process and delaying the introduction of the entry into human trials. Dr. Kevin Cassady and his team found that combinations of oncolytic viruses (OV) can be combined using current, approved cGMP stocks can be employed effectively and subsequently saving time that would have been spent on re-engineering, production, and validation, as well as the expense associated. The clinical outcome would be improved as this new process allows for a more rapid and cost-effective approach to clinical translation using existing stock of virus.