Margaret Ndinguri, PhD, professor of chemistry at Eastern Kentucky University (EKU), and Lindsay Cormier, PhD, MPH, associate professor of pharmacology and nutritional sciences, recently received a continuation patent for their cancer research. The patent’s research focuses on combining compounds that are attracted to and target cancer cells for the purpose of detection or the delivery of chemotherapy.
Ndinguri and Cormier’s first patent for cancer research came in 2018 for a targeted chemotherapy treatment that they developed in collaboration with biology faculty at EKU. The continuation patent is based on the 2018 patent. Though the continuation was recently granted, the process to attain the patent began in 2016, when the original application was filed.
“The researchers’ long-term goal is the development of chemotherapeutics for the treatment of reproductive cancers, and this patent is a big step forward in their journey,” said Tom Otieno, PhD, dean of EKU’s College of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).