ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
1–10 of 14 posts
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#2Why is there a patent on an algorithm that was developed using tax-payer money? Or maybe more importantly, why is it "available for licensing". Technically, I already own a small portion of the technique!
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#3Why is there a patent on an algorithm that was developed using tax-payer money? Or maybe more importantly, why is it "available for licensing". Technically, I already own a small portion of the technique!
Public institutions generate revenue from patents as well. All in all not a bad system as long as the revenue flows to more research. A cut is taken along the way usually so that private business expertise can help the sales & marketing process.
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#4Pretty low on detail, such as how dies this differ from the old method and what makes it so much more efficient exactly.
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#5Short URL to the patent at USPTO: http://1.usa.gov/plfTg3
I am not a specialist in protein folding, so take it with a grain of salt, but from the figures it does not look like method predicts actual configurations decoded from experiments. Patent itself acknowledges that (5.50): "the lack of computational prediction [...] can be attributed to problems arising form calculating molecular mechanics potentials (force-fields)".
Could anybody knowledgeable make an assessment how important this invention is?
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#6Pretty low on detail, such as how dies this differ from the old method and what makes it so much more efficient exactly.
Yeah, I was expecting at least some kind of handwaving explanation.
Usually the writing of these press releases goes like this:
1. Researcher discovers something that's pretty cool, and as the publication or patent is getting released decides to contact the institution's media department
2. Media department, if convinced that it's interesting (or just happens to be bored) sends someone around to talk to the researcher
3. Researcher explains what the hell the research is about to the media guy, who then goes away and writes down some of the fraction of the conversation he thought he understood. He collects a couple of quotes on the "Why this is important" bit. If the researcher is lucky, he gets a draft to correct before it goes out.
Judging by this particular press release, I can only assume that the guy the media department sent around to the researcher's office didn't understand a word of what the researcher was trying to say.
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#7Short URL to the patent at USPTO: http://1.usa.gov/plfTg3 I am not a specialist in protein folding, so take it with a grain of salt, but from the figures it does not look like method predicts actual configurations decoded from experiments. Patent itself acknowledges that (5.50): "the lack of computational prediction [...] can be attributed to problems arising form calculating molecular mechanics potentials (force-fie…
My knowledge of protein folding algorithms is pretty limited, and in any case everything in this press release is pretty vague.
However, this press release is dated September 14, and this is the first I'm hearing about it. A google news search for "Oak Ridge protein folding" shows only a teensy bit of small-time coverage (i.e. reprinting of the press release).
I'm inclined to think that if there was a big deal here, somebody knowledgeable would be making more noise about it.
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#8Why is there a patent on an algorithm that was developed using tax-payer money? Or maybe more importantly, why is it "available for licensing". Technically, I already own a small portion of the technique!
The Bayh-Dole Act is the reason that this can happen when the research is federally funded (in the US).
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#9URL of their paper in PLoS ONE: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjourna...
Re: ORNL invention unravels mystery of protein folding
#10Short URL to the patent at USPTO: http://1.usa.gov/plfTg3 I am not a specialist in protein folding, so take it with a grain of salt, but from the figures it does not look like method predicts actual configurations decoded from experiments. Patent itself acknowledges that (5.50): "the lack of computational prediction [...] can be attributed to problems arising form calculating molecular mechanics potentials (force-fie…
I'm no expert, but I have explored his problem in the past as I understand that protein folding simulations are considered by some to be the constraint of biological life extension. Protein folding is an intractable N-body simulation problem that relies on number of different methods to approximate the 3D state of the protein throughout its folding sequence.
In reviewing the patent, it looks like this is an incremental improvement to simulation based off some findings in recent years, but does not seem to be any kind of breakthrough in understanding of proteins. Something called 'Vibration Mode' seems to be an empirical observation that explains how the internal dynamic of the protein can limit the number of future 3D states based on a previously observed folding cycle, and a model of the local energy minima and maxima.