2286 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 11 / Thursday, January 18, 2007 / Notices 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

National Institutes of Health 

National Cancer Institute; Proposed 

Collection; Comment Requested; 

Study to Improve Thyroid Doses From 

Fallout Exposure in Kazakhstan—

Follow-up 

Summary: In compliance with the 

requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

for opportunity for public comment on 

proposed data collection projects, 

National Cancer Institute (NCI), the 

National Institutes of Health (NIH) will 

publish periodic summaries of proposed 

projects to be submitted to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review and approval. 

Proposed Collection 

Title: Study to improve thyroid doses 

from fallout exposure in Kazakhstan—

Follow-up, Radiation Epidemiology 

Branch, Division of Cancer 

Epidemiology and Genetics, National 

Cancer Institute (NCI). The proposed 

work builds on an existing study 

conducted 1998 of radiation exposure 

and thyroid disease among individuals 

in Kazakhstan exposed during 

childhood to radioactive fallout from 

nuclear tests conducted at the 

Semipalatinsk Nuclear Test Site (SNTS) 

between 1949 and 1962. The 1998 study 

recruited 3000 participants who were 21 

years of age or younger at fallout 

exposure, from eight villages. Analyses 

of preliminary dose estimates suggest 

that internal and external exposures 

independently and significantly 

contributed to the dose response for 

thyroid nodules. Type of Information 

Collection Request: NEW. 

This study population in Kazakhstan 

is unique in several ways. This is only 

the fourth major population in which 

dose-response has been studied for 

thyroid disease associated with 

environmental releases of radioactive 

materials. The conditions of fallout 

exposure in Kazakhstan are directly 

relevant to conditions following a 

hypothetical nuclear accident or a 

terrorist attack involving high levels of 

local fallout. Among large study 

populations with high exposure 

following environmental releases of 

radioactive materials, this population is 

second in size only to those most 

heavily exposed to radioactive materials 

released during the 1986 Chornobyl 

reactor accident. However, unlike the 

Chornobyl population, the Kazakhstan 

population was exposed to high levels 

of radiation from external as well as 

internal sources. This allows us to 

evaluate the relative effectiveness of 

internal and external radiation 

exposures in terms of thyroid disease 

risk within a single population. Need 

and Use of Information Collection: NCI 

proposes a small-scale field study to 

acquire new data to improve our 

estimates of internal and external 

radiation dose and thereby refine the 

dose-response estimates. Retrospective 

information about factors influencing 

radiation dose to the thyroid gland in 

children of two distinct ethnic groups 

(Kazakh and Russian) will be collected 

using focus group interviews. These 

new collected data will address key 

weaknesses in the current dosimetry, 

including milk and milk product 

consumption, time typically spent 

outdoors, radiation shielding provided 

by dwellings and other buildings, and 

seasonal practices of pasturing and 

supplemental feeding of dairy animals 

at the time of the nuclear tests. Since the 

objective is to estimate group-specific 

mean values (and ranges) and not to 

collect individual data, focus groups are 

better suited than conventional in-depth 

individual interviews. 

Focus group members for each village 

will consist of two sets of participants 

who (i) speak Russian or Kazakh and are 

able to participate in a 2 hour focus 

group session, and (ii) have verified 

history of residence in the village at the 

time of the nuclear tests will be 

recruited for the study. 

Frequency of Response: Once; 

Affected Public: Individual and 

household. 

Type of Respondent: Women, Men age 

65 or older 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

128. 

Estimated Number of Responses per 

Respondent: 1. 

Average Burden Hours per Response: 

2.0. Annual Burden Hours Requested: 

256. 

• Women: In each village, three 

groups of 8 women ages 65 years and 

older who had children less than age 15 

years or provided care to children in 

this age group (i.e., younger siblings, 

nieces and nephews) at the time of the 

nuclear tests. 

• Men: In each village, 8 men ages 65 

and older who were engaged in farming 

and care of dairy animals at the time of 

the nuclear tests. 

Since the main exposure years (time 

of the tests) varies by village, specific 

eligibility requirements will be applied 

to each village. Verification of residence 

history will be based on regional 

records. 

TABLE A.—TOTAL BURDEN ESTIMATES FOR DATA COLLECTION

Form Number of respondents 

Number of responses per 

respondent 

Average burden per response 

(in hours) 

Total burden 

(in hours) 

Focus Group .................................................................................................... 128 1 2 hours 256 

Male .......................................................................................................... 32 1 2 hours 64 

Female ...................................................................................................... 96 1 2 hours 192 

Total ................................................................................................... ........................ ........................ ........................ 256 

There are no Capital Costs to report. 

There are no Operating or Maintenance 

Costs to report. 

Request for Comments 

Written comments and/or suggestions 

from the public and affected agencies 

are invited on one or more of the 

following points: (1) Whether the 

proposed collection of information is 

necessary for the proposed performance 

of the functions of the agency, including 

whether the information shall have 

practical utility; (2) The accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden of the 

proposed collection of information 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; (3) 

Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (4) Ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on those who are to respond, including 

the use of appropriate automated, 

electronic, mechanical, or other 

technological collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 


pwalker on PROD1PC71 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 11 / Thursday, January 18, 2007 / Notices 2287 

For Further Information Contact: To 

request more information on the 

proposed project or to obtain a copy of 

the data collection plans and 

instruments, contact Charles Land, 

Project Officer, National Cancer 

Institute, EPS , 6120 Executive 

Boulevard MSC 7238, Bethesda, 

Maryland 20852, or call non-toll free 

number 301–594–7165 or FAX your 

request, including your address to 301–

402–0207. 

Comments Due Date 

Comments regarding this information 

collection are best assured of having 

their full effect if received within 60 

days of this publication. 

Dated: January 8, 2007. 

Rachelle Ragland-Greene, 

NCI Project Clearance Liaison, National 

Institutes of Health. 

[FR Doc. E7–625 Filed 1–17–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4140–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES 

National Institutes of Health 

Government-Owned Inventions; 

Availability for Licensing 

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, 

Public Health Service, HHS. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The inventions listed below 

are owned by an agency of the U.S. 

Government and are available for 

licensing in the U.S. in accordance with 

35 U.S.C. 207 to achieve expeditious 

commercialization of results of 

federally-funded research and 

development. Foreign patent 

applications are filed on selected 

inventions to extend market coverage 

for companies and may also be available 

for licensing. 

ADDRESSES: Licensing information and 

copies of the U.S. patent applications 

listed below may be obtained by writing 

to the indicated licensing contact at the 

Office of Technology Transfer, National 

Institutes of Health, 6011 Executive 

Boulevard, Suite 325, Rockville, 

Maryland 20852–3804; telephone: 301/ 

496–7057; fax: 301/402–0220. A signed 

Confidential Disclosure Agreement will 

be required to receive copies of the 

patent applications. 

Novel Benztropine Analogs for 

Treatment of Cocaine Abuse and Other 

Mental Disorders 

Description of Technology: Dopamine 

is a neurotransmitter that exerts 

important effects on locomotor activity, 

motivation and reward, and cognition. 

The dopamine transporter (DAT) is 

expressed on the plasma membrane of 

dopamine synthesizing neurons, and is 

responsible for clearing dopamine 

released into the extra-cellular space, 

thereby regulating neurotransmission. 

The dopamine transporter plays a 

significant role in neurotoxicity and 

human diseases, such as Parkinson’s 

disease, drug abuse (especially cocaine 

addiction), Attention Deficit Disorder/ 

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder 

(ADD/ADHD), and a number of other 

CNS disorders. Therefore, the dopamine 

transporter is a strong target for research 

and the discovery of potential 

therapeutics for the treatment of these 

indications. 

This invention discloses novel 

benztropine analogs and methods of 

using these analogs for treatment of 

mental and conduct disorders such as 

cocaine abuse, narcolepsy, ADHD, 

obesity and nicotine abuse. The 

disclosed analogs are highly selective 

and potent inhibitors of DAT, but 

without an apparent cocaine-like 

behavioral profile. In addition to their 

use as a treatment for cocaine abuse, 

these compounds have also shown 

efficacy in animal models of ADHD and 

nicotine abuse, and have also been 

shown to reduce food intake in animals. 

They may also be useful medications for 

other indications where dopaminerelated behavior is compromised, such 

as alcohol addiction, tobacco addiction, 

and Parkinson’s disease. 

Applications: Drug leads for treatment 

of cocaine abuse, ADHD, nicotine abuse, 

obesity, and other dopamine-related 

disorders; Imaging probes for dopamine 

transporter binding sites. 

Development Status: Pre-clinical data 

are available. 

Inventors: Amy H. Newman, Mu-fa 

Zou, and Jonathan L. Katz (NIDA). 

Patent Status: U.S. Provisional 

Application No. 60/710,956 filed 24 

Aug 2005 (HHS Reference No. E–234–

2005/0–US–01); PCT Application No. 

PCT/US2006/33103 filed 24 Aug 2006 

(HHS Reference No. E–234–2005/1–

PCT–01 and HHS Reference No. E–129–

2006/0). 

Licensing Status: Available for 

exclusive or nonexclusive licensing. 

Licensing Contact: Tara Kirby, Ph.D.; 

301/435–4426; tarak@mail.nih.gov. 

Collaborative Research Opportunity: 

The Medicinal Chemistry and 

Psychobiology Sections, National 

Institute on Drug Abuse-Intramural 

Research Program, National Institutes of 

Health, is seeking statements of 

capability or interest from parties 

interested in collaborative research to 

further develop, evaluate, or 

commercialize medications to treat 

cocaine abuse and addiction. Please 

contact John D. Hewes, Ph.D. at 301/ 

435–3121 or hewesj@mail.nih.gov for 

more information. 

Protein Arginine N-methyltransferase 2 

(PRMT–2), a Modulator of NFKB, E2F1, 

and STAT3 Activity 

Description of Technology: Proteinarginine methyltransferases (PRMTs) 

contain methyltransferase domains that 

modify chromatin and regulate cellular 

transcription through the posttranslational methylation of arginine 

residues on the guanidine group of 

target proteins. Members of this family 

have roles in RNA processing, 

transcriptional regulation, signal 

transduction, and DNA repair. Until 

recently, the functional significance of 

one member of this family, PRMT–2, 

was unknown. 

Researchers at NHLBI, led by Dr. 

Elizabeth Nabel, have elucidated the 

role of PRMT–2. They have found that 

PRMT–2 modulates the activity of 

NFKB, E2F1, and STAT3. PRMT–2 

inhibits NFKB dependent transcription, 

and therefore PRMT–2 has a role in 

modulating inflammation and the 

immune response. Also, PRMT–2 

proteins can repress E2F1 

transcriptional activity and cause cell 

cycle arrest, and thus may be used to 

treat or prevent cancer. PRMT–2 also 

methylates STAT3, and inhibition or 

loss of PRMT–2 function causes 

mammals to lose weight, eat less and 

become more sensitive to insulin. 

The invention describes methods of 

modulating PRMT–2 activity or 

expression in cells. These methods can 

be used to inhibit the function of NF?B, 

E2F1 and STAT3 for treatment of a 

number of disorders, including 

inflammation, cancer, and diabetes. 

Applications: Target for treatment and 

study of a number of disorders, 

including: 

Diabetes, obesity and metabolic 

syndrome diseases; Inflammation and 

immune response-related disorders; 

Cancer. 

Inventors: Elizabeth Nabel (NHLBI), 

Hiroaki Iwasaki (NHLBI), Takanobu 

Yoshimoto (NHLBI), and Gary Nabel 

(NIAID). 

Patent Status: U.S. Provisional 

Application No. 60/466,751 filed 30 

April 2003 (HHS Reference No. E–190–

2003/0–US–01); PCT Application No. 

PCT2004/013375 filed 30 April 2004, 

which published as WO 2004/098634 

on 18 Nov 2004 (HHS Reference No. E–

190–2003/0–PCT–02); U.S. Application 

No. 11/263,657 filed 31 Oct 2005, which 

published as WO 2006/0239990 on 26 


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