MSU Offers Four New Technologies
for Licensing to Entrepreneurs

A way to precisely place an electrode in the brain, a microscope small enough to fit inside a needle and a way to distinguish live from dead bacterial cells are among four new technologies developed by faculty at Montana State University.

The technologies are available for licensing by interested companies and entrepreneurs.

The first technology is a small electrode that could have applications in studying the human brain or assisting it after disease or injury. Currently, electrodes inserted into a brain can't be moved. The MSU device allows electrodes to be moved micron by micron until they are near neuron receptors. With this precise placement, the electrodes could be used to stimulate parts of the brain responsible for speech or other activities. Read description (pdf)

In the second technology, a MSU researcher developed a confocal (Ultra-High Resolution Camera) microscope with an end diameter of less than two millimeters that is housed in a flexible fiber. The microscope has the ability to look over the area of a rough or curved surface without moving. This makes it well suited for creating 3-D images, processing information on a CD or DVD, reading bar codes, and creating medical images from inside the body. The microscope can scan rapidly and is small enough to be placed inside the bore of a needle or other small probe. Read description (pdf)

A third technology is a new method for distinguishing between live and dead bacterial cells in molecular assays. The method could potentially be used in microbial diagnostics to observe the live portion of a broad range of bacterial mixtures when screening for disease-causing microorganisms in food and water; clinical diagnostics; bioterrorism assays; evaluating disinfection efficacy; and testing the sterility of drugs and personal care products. Prior to molecular analysis, the cells are treated with a unique compound and exposed to visible light. This process binds the compound to the DNA of dead cells only so the dead cells are blocked from being read by the assay. Thus, only live cells are observed. The method can be performed in about 10 minutes without any specialized expertise. Read description (pdf)

The fourth technology consists of one-millimeter mirrors that could be used in the focus controls for endoscopic medical instruments, as switches for fiber-optic cables, and in the devices that read information from hard drives. The mirrors are easy to manufacture and can be focused or moved almost instantly.  Read description (pdf)

Companies interested in licensing any of these technologies should contact Nick Zelver with the MSU Technology Transfer Office at (406) 994-7868 or by email at nzelver@montana.edu by July 28.

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Public release date: 11 Jul 2006
MSU News Service
(406) 994-7706