Dr. Ivan Osorio, member of Flint Hills Scientific and professor of Neurology at the University of Kansas Medical Center, has been working with a group of former Soviet weapons scientists since 2001. While participating in the Technology Transfer program at the Department of Energy’s Kansas City Plant, Dr. Osorio was introduced to the Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention (IPP) program, which links former Soviet weapons specialists with American companies. Through IPP, Kansas City Plant Dr. Osorio and the Flint Hills Scientific team have worked with the Russian scientists, the Kansas City Plant, and the Argonne National Laboratory.
Approximately one percent of the population of industrialized countries has epilepsy, with an even higher proportion in non-industrialized countries. Many of these people (20 to 40 percent in industrialized countries) do not respond to existing medication or treatments, and must suffer through the constant threat of seizures. Furthermore, a poll commissioned in 1992 which interviewed over 1,000 epilepsy sufferers discovered that only 15 percent said they were doing well, meaning they had no seizures and no side effects from their drugs. Clearly, there is a great need for other therapeutic measures to relieve the pain and stress of epilepsy. Thanks to a $1 million grant from IPP, Flint Hills Scientific, with the help of former weapons scientists from Biophysical Laboratory Ltd. (Biofil) in Sarov, Russia, has been working diligently to develop alternative treatments. “The program never would have started, however, without the diligent work of the staff at Argonne National Laboratory. As the interlocutor between Flint Hills and Biofil, Argonne laid the groundwork for the tremendous accomplishments that have followed. Dr. Osorio was quick to emphasize the important role that Argonne staff (Sami Gopalsami, Paul Raptis, and Dave Ehst in particular) played in getting the project moving. “Without them,” he said, “there would be no project.”
After years of hard work, scientists from both Flint Hills and Biofil (a spin-off of the All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics) have developed a method to help control seizures. By regulating the brain’s temperature, epileptic seizures can be kept in check without the risk of making seizures worse (a danger inherent with electric brain stimulation, another therapeutic alternative). However, the human brain contains large amounts of fat, which is a very good insulator, making diffusion of thermal energy extremely difficult. Any device that would control epilepsy by regulating the brain’s temperature would have to work extremely quickly in order to counteract rising temperatures. Working with the Russian scientists, Flint Hills Scientific has developed probes that quickly cool the brain, opening up avenues for thermal therapy. The Russian and American scientists, closely integrated as one team, worked to refine the geometry and size of the probes to minimize the time necessary to reduce the brain’s temperature, thus helping to fight off epileptic seizures. Now that the probes are completed, the project is halfway done, and Flint Hills Scientific can work on commercializing its treatment. The thermal probes may have other applications as well. Potentially, they can be used for the treatment of movement and psychological disorders, and chronic pain relief.
The team of three Americans and fifteen Russians has made incredible strides in developing this cooling technology. The success of this project has led Flint Hills Scientific to apply for another IPP grant for the development of low-risk electrical implants to treat epilepsy. This second application was also driven by the Americans’ excellent working relationship with the Russian scientists, who were described by Dr. Osorio as “very cordial, very thoughtful, and exceptionally competent.” While it took some time for the Americans and Russians to get used to the scientific styles of their partners, a good rapport developed quickly, and the project evolved into a “highly integrated process.” Dr. Osorio stated, “The Russians are very thoughtful, and are considerably more systematic in their approach.” Whereas the Americans sought to get positive results as soon as possible, the Russians took time to analyze every situation to get every last detail of knowledge from their research. The end result of the collaboration, despite the contrasting styles, has shown the partnership was extremely valuable.
Flint Hills Scientific signed with the IPP program for several reasons, the first of which was its commitment to nonproliferation. To be eligible for IPP collaboration, scientists in the former Soviet Union must have done work relating to weapons of mass destruction or their delivery systems. The Russians working with Flint Hills Scientific are from the closed nuclear city of Sarov, which, during the Soviet era, was a main design center for nuclear weapons. Nonproliferation goals were not the only reasons for Flint Hills Scientific to join IPP, however. The Russian scientists are all extremely qualified, and have the expertise necessary to help people with epilepsy. Furthermore, working with qualified Russian scientists costs much less than working with their American counterparts, even though the Russians are just as qualified. Clearly, this Russian-American collaboration has been a great success.
Flint Hills Scientific: www.fhs.lawrence.ks.us