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Volume 3, Issue 3 |
Invention
Spotlight
A K-State technology
transfer success story
Blood typing pets has become an important issue in veterinary medicine. Animals can receive blood transfusions and, as with humans, it is essential to transfuse a compatible blood type. Blood typing is also important when mating cats. Cats have two major blood types, A and B. If a female cat with blood type B mates with a male cat with blood type A some of the kittens may die due to a reaction with the mothers antibodies.
Blood typing cats and dogs hasn’t always been easy or accurate. In 1990 Joseph Smith, K-State professor in the Diagnostic Medicine/Pathology Department of the College of Veterinary Medicine, and Gordon Andrews, associate professor in the same department, invented accurate, quick, economical in-office methods for blood typing cats and dogs. These technologies allow veterinarians to type cats and dogs during a regular office visit. A pet’s blood type can then be kept on file for any future need.
The invention of these technologies began in 1990 with feline blood typing. After disclosing the feline blood typing technology to the Kansas State University Research Foundation (KSURF) in July 1990, the inventors worked with KSURF to obtain patent protection for the invention. A patent application was filed in November 1990. Smith and Andrews disclosed dog blood typing technology to KSURF in January 1991 and KSURF filed a patent application in June 1991. Out of these applications U.S. Patent 5,143,826 was issued for the feline blood typing method in September 1992.
After learning of these technologies from a colleague in late 1994, the President of DMS Laboratories Nicholas Gallo contacted Smith to pursue licensing the technologies. KSURF, Smith, Andrews and MACC worked to create a license agreement with DMS Laboratories, based in New Jersey, to commercialize the technologies. This agreement became effective in January 1995 and enables DMS Laboratories to sell these blood typing products to veterinarians. The inventors, the inventors’ department, and KSURF receive royalties from this agreement.
Smith died in May 1998, but his heirs continue to receive royalties
from the technologies. Andrews continued research on the technologies and
created an improvement on the feline blood typing technology. KSURF filed
a new U.S. patent application for feline blood typing in July 2001 and
filed for international protection in May 2002. DMS, KSURF and MACC worked
to amend the original license agreement in March 2001 to include the new
technology. This
patent is currently pending with Andrews and Smith listed as inventors.
The commercial success of these technologies has been steadily growing with the products currently being sold in 28 countries. This could not have been accomplished without the time and effort the inventors put into the process – from creating the technologies and drafting patent applications to working with the licensee to help ensure appropriate use.
Visit the DMS Laboratories’ Web site at www.rapidvet.com for more information about DMS and the products sold from Smith and Andrew’s technologies.
If you are a K-State researcher interested in securing your technology,
contact KSURF (532-5720, tech. transfer@ksu.edu).
