麻豆影院

In 1954, solar energy pioneer and CU 麻豆影院 engineering professor George L枚f was granted patent US2680565 for a solar heating apparatus and method. It was the first patent associated with the university. 聽

Nearly 30 years later, CU received another inaugural patent. This one helped change the course of global human health.聽

Patent US4415732, filed in 1981 and granted in 1983, was CU鈥檚 first patent following the 1980 Bayh-Dole Act, which allowed universities to hold patents for federally funded inventions. Distinguished chemistry and biochemistry professor Marvin Caruthers 鈥� who remains on CU鈥檚 faculty 鈥� and research chemist Serge Beaucage 鈥� now chief of the FDA鈥檚 Laboratory of Biological Chemistry 鈥� were co-inventors on the patent, which helped pave the way for Amgen, now the world鈥檚 largest independent biotechnology company.

鈥淭here was never any doubt that my life鈥檚 work would somehow be involved with one of the natural or biological sciences,鈥� wrote Caruthers in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.聽

鈥淧hosphoramidite Compounds and Processes鈥� patented a new class of nucleoside phosphoramidites, a chemical that allowed scientists to create short DNA or RNA sequences in the lab. These synthesized sequences 鈥� called oligonucleotides 鈥� helped initiate research on bacteria, human growth hormones, DNA testing and more.聽

Caruther鈥檚 work involving oligonucleotide synthesis, along with other prominent DNA sequencing research of the time, jumpstarted the now multi-billion-dollar biotechnology industry.
While continuing his research at CU 麻豆影院, Caruthers co-founded both Applied Biosystems 鈥� which sold protein sequencing and DNA synthesizing instruments 鈥� and Amgen, which focused on genetic engineering in the early 1980s.聽

In addition to his responsibilities at CU, Caruthers directed a group of Amgen scientists in 麻豆影院 to synthesize DNA for treatments to help the critically ill. One such treatment helped patients with severe kidney disease. Another greatly reduced infections associated with chemotherapy.聽

Today, Caruthers maintains a small research group at CU and focuses on humanitarian interests including the development of new chemistries for the treatment of rare and fatal genetic diseases. The revolutionary days of the 鈥�80s still stay with him.聽

Said Caruthers: 鈥淚n my laboratory, basic research is always a co-operative activity involving many colleagues. This patent is an example. Several, in addition to Beaucage, improved and modified the chemistry so that today, almost 40 years later, these methods for chemically synthesizing DNA and RNA remain state of the art.鈥澛�

Photo courtesy of Marvin Caruthers