Patent for Zika, West Nile treatment among UNC awards
GREELEY — A patent to create a potential treatment for Zika and West Nile viruses is among innovation awards announced Thursday by a University of Northern Colorado office.
The inaugural awards recognizing innovation disclosures, intellectual property and commercialization activities are presented by UNC’s Office of Innovation Development and Enterprise Advancement (IDEA), which helps faculty and students get their ideas into the marketplace.
Susan Keenan won the Patent Award for her and her Colorado State University colleagues’ granted patent, “Thioxothiazolindine Inhibitors,” a potential treatment for a genus of viruses called flavivirus that include Zika, West Nile, dengue, tick-borne encephalitis and yellow fever. Keenan is seeking corporate-development partners for the work.
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Elysia Clemens won the Innovator of the Year award for Apprentice, a software application in desktop and mobile versions for managing field-based experiences such as internships for students and supervisors.
Michael Mosher won the Invention of the Year award for development of an in-line sensor on brewing vats. The device measures unwanted compounds that spoil flavor as beer is brewing, allowing for adjustments to be made without pulling samples and conducting hands-on analysis that other techniques require. Mosher, who also oversees UNC’s Brewing Laboratory Science program, also is seeking corporate-development partners.
Reid Hayward won an Innovation of the Year award for his work with UNC’s Cancer Rehabilitation Institute and creation of the Clinical Cancer Exercise Specialist training program, which will be licensed soon to a United Kingdom-based company.
Braeden Ayres and Trevor Lovell were named Student Innovators of the Year for “Project Osorhythm,” a music- education app designed to effectively teach rhythm concepts and skills. The project won UNC’s first-ever Spark Competition to encourage music innovations. The project won a $1,500 grant.
IDEA also recognized more than 50 innovators who submitted innovation disclosures since IDEA’s inception in 2014 as well as the Innovation@UNC teams, which have created 13 new programs that have received funding as part of a university initiative.
IDEA, Innovation@UNC and UNC BizHub, an incubator for educational and entrepreneurial services to help build sustainable businesses, are part of UNC’s continued focus on innovation.
