PERFORMANCE
OF
COMPLETED
PROJECTS
STATUS REPORT
NUMBER 1
NIST SPECIAL PUBLICATION 950-1
Economic Assessment Office
Advanced Technology Program
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899
William F. Long
Business Performance Research Associates, Inc.
Bethesda, Maryland 20814
March 1999
CONTENTS
Acknowledgements
Executive Summary
Introduction
CHAPTER 1 - Overview of Completed Projects
Characteristics
of the Projects
Timeline of Expected ATP Project
Activities and Impacts
Gains in Technical Knowledge
Dissemination of New Knowledge
Commercialization of the New Technology
Broad-Based Economic Benefits
CHAPTER 2 - Biotechnology
Aastrom
Biosciences, Inc.
Aphios Corporation
Molecular Simulations, Inc.
Thermo Trilogy Corporation
Tissue Engineering, Inc.
CHAPTER 3 - Chemicals and Chemical Processing
BioTraces, Inc.
CHAPTER 4 - Discrete Manufacturing
Auto
Body Consortium (Joint Venture)
HelpMate Robotics, Inc.
PreAmp Consortium (Joint Venture)
Saginaw Machine Systems, Inc.
CHAPTER 5 - Electronics
Accuwave
Corporation
AstroPower, Inc.
Cree Research, Inc.
Cynosure, Inc.
Diamond Semiconductor Group, LLC
FSI International, Inc.
Galileo Corporation
Hampshire Instruments, Inc. (Joint Venture)
Illinois Superconductor Corporation
Light Age, Inc.
Lucent Technologies, Inc.
Multi-Film Venture (Joint Venture)
Nonvolatile Electronics, Inc.
Spire Corporation
Thomas Electronics, Inc.
CHAPTER 6 - Energy and Environment
American
Superconductor Corporation
Armstrong World Industries, Inc.
E.I. duPont de Nemours & Company
Michigan Molecular Institute
CHAPTER 7 - Information, Computers, and Communications
Communication Intelligence
Corporation #1
Communication Intelligence Corporation #2
Engineering Animation, Inc.
ETOM Technologies, Inc.
Mathematical Technologies, Inc.
Torrent Systems, Inc.
CHAPTER 8 - Materials
AlliedSignal, Inc.
Geltech Incorporated
IBM Corporation
APPENDICES
Appendix
A: Development of New Knowledge and Early Commercial Products
and Processes
Appendix
B: Terminated Projects
END NOTES
End Notes
Click here
for PDF version of report.
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BioTraces, Inc.
Highly Sensitive Detectors for
Biomedical and Environmental Diagnostics
| A technology
that can detect minute traces of biomolecules - pesticides,
bacteria in water, organic toxins like botulin - much better
than conventional detectors would be extremely useful in a number
of fields. Medicine, for instance, has obvious need for highly
sensitive methods of detecting viruses. Such a technology would
also be applicable in a broad range of environmental areas,
where early detection of chemicals or other substances could
trigger corrective action early enough to head off disaster.
Detecting traces of toxic materials in a municipal water supply,
for example, might lead to the elimination of their source before
they poison the city's population. A highly sensitive detection
technology could also be useful for the optimized control of
semiconductor fabrication. |
Detecting
Minute Amounts of Unwanted Molecules
This ATP project
created such a technology through the efforts of BioTraces, a small
company founded in 1989 to develop, manufacture and market instruments
for detecting microtraces of various materials. During its ATP project,
the company developed a highly sensitive biomolecule detection method
based on an improved radioactive tracer detection system originally
developed for cosmology. Instruments of this types use radioactive
isotopes that are chemically bound to the target molecules or atoms.
Photon or electron detectors that register radiation decay particles
are used to spot the "tagged" targets. Sensitivity is limited by
background radiation - 10 to 100 counts per minute for conventional
commercial instruments in typical applications. BioTraces beats
this limitation with a sophisticated multiphoton detector (MPD)
that registers only counts that match the multiple-photon decay
pattern of the isotopes used as tags. In contrast to conventional
methods, background levels for BioTraces detectors are a few counts
per day.
Safer
Analyses for Patients and the Environment
The BioTraces
technology uses different isotopes to tag different types of molecules
in the sample. This allows several different molecule types to be
measured simultaneously, greatly speeding complex analysis tasks
such as those used in clinical screening (for example, to detect
contaminants in blood supplies). Since background interference is
so low, the minimum amount of isotope needed for an analysis can
be as much as 1000 times less than that used in conventional radioisotope
analysis, making the BioTraces system considerably safer for patients
and the environment.
The company
met most of the project's technical goals. Its researchers developed
prototype MPD instrumentation hardware and software that is much
more sensitive than current state-of-the-art equipment. They also
developed biomedical applications of the technology for enhanced
immunoassay, chromatography and nucleic acid analysis.
First
Fruits of Commercialization
At the start
of the ATP project, BioTraces planned to do only the instrumentation
work and to leave specific applications to partner companies. But
lack of success in finding suitable partners led BioTraces to change
its approach to commercialization. It is now finishing development
work on the MPD technology and hopes to begin offering its own commercial
products widely in the near future. The company has made enough
progress to license the technology exclusively to a new company,
PetroTraces, for petrochemical applications. PetroTraces uses it
to tag and trace different liquids and gases that are transported
in pipelines so it can supply customers with data for auditing and
other applications.
BioTraces' own
initial commercial product, the ssMPD (sequential sample MPD) is
used for super-sensitive measurement in extremely small samples
- up to a few milliliters. The ssMPD received market clearance from
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for sale as a clinical diagnostics
device and entered the market in 1997 on a limited basis for use
in research. BioTraces expects to launch wide-scale sales of the
ssMPD in late 1998 or early 1999, after enhancing protection for
its proprietary software and establishing a strategic alliance with
a major clinical diagnostics company.
The new MPD
technology has great potential as an advanced biomedical diagnostic
tool and for other uses where detection of minute traces of biomolecules
is critical. BioTraces entered an agreement with Pasteur-Merieux
Connaught, a French company, under which it developed an MPD-enhanced
quantitative polymerase chain reaction assay for measuring tiny
amounts of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA).
And in June 1997 it arranged for Genetics Institute, Inc., to evaluate
the MPD technology as a pharmaceutical research and development
tool. If the test is successful, it could lead to a license allowing
Genetics Institute, Inc., to use the technology in its drug discovery
program.
ATP
Gives a Big Boost to a Small Startup
BioTraces is
a very small company, having only three employees when it started
the ATP project. Since then, the company has received $1 million
in equity investment to support commercialization of the new technology.
It has also entered into discussions with two venture capital firms
about securing an additional $4 million in equity funding in 1998.
Company officials
report that the ATP award enabled BioTraces to achieve its research
results two to three years sooner than it otherwise would have been
able to do. The funds also helped it develop research alliances
and improved its ability to raise investor capital.
PROJECT:
To develop instrumentation based on multiphoton detection (MPD),
high-speed/high-sensitivity sensors and proprietary software,
one that can detect minute concentrations of chemicals in gas,
liquid or solid matrices - a technology that would be extremely
useful in environmental monitoring and biomedical research.
Duration: 1/1/1994 - 12/31/1996
ATP Number: ATP number: 93-01-0250
FUNDING
(in thousands):
| ATP |
$1,718 |
69% |
| Company |
773 |
31% |
| Total |
$2,491 |
|
ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
BioTraces developed MPD instrumentation, both hardware and
software, as well as biomedical applications of the technology
for enhanced immunoassay, chromatography and nucleic acid
analysis. The company:
- applied
for two patents on technology developed during the ATP project:
- "Enhanced
Chromatography Using Multiphoton Detection", and
- "Ultralow
Background Multiple Photon Detection;"
- negotiated
with the French company Pasteur-Merieux Connaught an agreement
under which BioTraces developed an MPD-enhanced quantitative
polymerase chain reaction assay for measuring tiny amounts
of DNA and RNA;
- negotiated
a $1.78 million agreement in July 1996 with a newly-formed
company, PetroTraces, granting it an exclusive license for
commercial applications of the new technology in the petroleum
industry - a deal that so far has generated $585,000 in
revenues for PetroTraces and $560,000 in license fees for
BioTraces;
- arranged
in June 1997 for Genetics Institute, Inc., to evaluate the
MPD technology as a pharmaceutical R&D tool; if successful,
the test could lead to a license allowing Genetics Institute,
Inc. to use the technology in its drug discovery program;
- created
a clinical diagnostics device, the ssMPD(tm) (sequential
sample MPD), which received market clearance from the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration and entered the market on a
limited basis in 1997;
- has
received since the start of the ATP project $1 million in
equity investment to support commercialization of the new
technology; and
- entered
into discussions with two venture capital firms about securing
an additional $4 million in equity funding in 1998 or 1999.
COMMERCIALIZATION
STATUS:
Commercialization is in progress. Applications of the technology
are underway in the petrochemical field via PetroTraces. BioTraces'
first commercial product for medical applications, ssMPD(tm),
has entered the market on a limited basis and is expected
to be more widely available in 1998 or 1999.
OUTLOOK:
Once BioTraces works out a strategy for protecting its intellectual
property, the new technology is expected to be disseminated
more aggressively. Given its potential use in detecting viruses,
bacteria, toxins and pollutants, the ATP-funded technology
stands to generate substantial benefits to the economy. If,
for example, it were used to detect a toxin in a water supply,
preventing a whole town or region from becoming ill, the benefits
would be enormous.
COMPANY:
BioTraces, Inc.
10517-A West Drive
Fairfax, VA 22153
Contact:
E. James Wadiak
Phone: (703) 273-6941
Number
of employees:
3 at project start, 14 at the end of 1997
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Date
created: March 1999
Last updated:
April 12, 2005
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