Tampa : Innovation + Job News

Cancer patients who rely on new drugs to address their illness may get faster relief, thanks to a new computerized matching system.

The H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center has received a patent for a computerized system that matches the right patient for the right treatment trial using patient-donated tissue or tumor samples. These samples are entered into a database, along with patient symptoms, then analyzed at the molecular level to determine which trial drug will be most effective in addressing the disease quickly. The system is designed to accelerate clinical trials and shorten the time it takes to get new drugs into the market.

Dr. Dan Sullivan, associate center director and executive VP of clinical investigations at Moffitt, says different drugs work in different ways, some addressing gene structure and others mutations. 

"There are levels of gene expression," explains Sullivan. "You’re looking at all sorts of genes. And we can find mutations in tumors. Some drugs work with specific mutations. Others respond to different genes. For example in breast cancers, most of the drugs are addressing different genes. But, in say melanoma, some drugs seem to work better addressing specific mutations."

Getting a drug on the market is a complicated process that takes an average of 15 years to complete. It is hoped that this system will shorten this time by honing in on the right molecular structures. 

Sullivan says the formal cancer care protocol has registered 85,000 patients across 17 consortium sites in 10 states. All will be using the same database to match patients to drugs.

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Dr. Dan Sullivan, Moffitt Cancer Center

A study underway is investigating the effects of oral hygiene in intubated adults for preventing pneumonia, a frequent cause of death among critically ill patients. 

Led by Cindy Munro, associate dean for research and innovation at the University of South Florida College of Nursing, the study will look at how an application of chlorhexidine (CHX) just prior to intubation will help decrease cases of VAP, or ventilator-associated pneumonia, among intubated adult patients at Tampa General Hospital (TGH). 

According to Munro's research, the tubes used in ventilation often pick up bacteria on their way through the mouth and into the lungs, which then causes infections such as pneumonia. Munro says the application of CHX, which kills bacteria, may decrease the likelihood of infection if applied before intubation.

"It's much like when your arm gets swabbed before putting a needle in," says Munro. "We’ve been doing this work for a long time now. We knew from previous studies that brushing teeth during intubation improved patients' health, and from that study we knew that CXH was critical to the patient’s oral health while intubated, But it's tricky because there is so much going on when a patient is being intubated and we never want to disturb that.

"The study is funded and fully enrolled," continues Munro. "We have 78 patients at TGH and more at other facilities around the country. I’m pretty anxious to see how this works."

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Cindy Munro, University of South Florida College of Nursing

Two Tampa car enthusiasts are driving the Tampa Bay region closer to embracing electric vehicles, or EVs.

Doug Mitchell, owner of Z-Fever in Tampa, has partnered with Victor Juarez to not only build electric vehicles but to educate the community about their value. 

"About five years ago Victor approached me and said he was looking for someone to help him build an electric car," says Mitchell. "We helped him fabricate a Nissan Sentra to make it electric. That’s kind of blossomed into a new business with Victor."

Mitchell says that converting cars from gasoline-powered to electric-powered really isn't as difficult as most people assume. 

"You’re  basically taking the gas motor out and replacing it with an electric one," explains Mitchell. "The difference is with the cables. You need to make the gauges work. And along with that, we did the suspension because the battery pack used is quite heavy, so it changes the balance of the vehicle."

Mitchell says he has accompanied Juarez, who is well-connected in the EV industry, to several car shows, and it was through these experiences that the pair realized they could make a bigger impact to educate than the industry was currently doing.

"By being at these shows, we realized they’re really missing the mark," says Mitchell. "If you really want to drive the vision, you have to get the consumer involved. The ones attending these shows are already involved in the industry. No consumers ever attend, even though they are open to the public."

And so Mitchell and Juarez decided to host their own expo earlier this year to educate the Tampa Bay community about the benefits of EV cars and technology. 

"What I hear most often is, 'How long can I drive an EV before I run out of power?' We partnered with Get Ready Tampa Bay, who are helping to spread the word about places like AAA on Westshore, garages in downtown Tampa and other locations where EV owners can power their vehicles in a fraction of the time it would take them to charge it at home. They thought they were coming to see a couple cars. But they were educated. People left knowing that there was so much more going on than they ever imagined. And we brought that to them."

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Doug Mitchell, Z-Fever

Sometimes it takes a survivor to help a survivor.

That's exactly what is happening at the USF College of Nursing. While working on her dissertation a few years back, Dr. Cecile Lengacher learned from research that cancer survivors off treatment from one to two years reported continued fatigue, depression, pain and sleep disturbances -- the very things that could lead cancer to return to their bodies. Lengacher, a cancer survivor, decided to explore how meditative practice would help alleviate stress -- and thus decrease recurrence. It ultimately led to a study currently underway that explores how meditation reduces stress in cancer survivors.

"If you reduce stress, you reduce cortisol and inflammation. Inflammation is a precursor to cancer,'' explains Lengacher. "I actually did some guided imagery research in 1997 to see how it affected stress levels. I tried to get funding for it, but I couldn’t get it. But I kept thinking there may be a biological component to stress. Working at USF, I became very interested in working with cancer patients."

Lengacher's study has taken several groups of 15 to 20 cancer survivors and taught them relaxation techniques that include breathing, body scanning and yoga over a course of six weeks. Participants are asked to continue practice at home for another six. Lengacher and her staff have been monitoring psychological and physical effects to determine if the techniques are working to reduce signs of stress. 

The trial has been going for four years, and Lengacher says she is seeing positive results not just for participants but for herself as well. "The results we’ve seen so far indicate that it is relieving symptoms of depression, anxiety and fear of recurrence. It teaches them to be mindful of today and enjoy today. In our lives often we’re focused on tomorrow but sometimes tomorrow doesn’t come. So it teaches them to really value today."

The study is funded by the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health.

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Dr. Cecile Lengacher, USF College of Nursing

Weary caregivers of chronically ill loved ones may be able to sleep a little sounder this summer.

CareAlert, an electronic sensor alert system, goes on the market in June, according to its creator, Dr. Meredeth Rowe. Rowe is on the faculty at USF's College of Nursing. The system is comprised of silent motion detectors and a handheld device that gives off a sound alert and text message communicating a patient's whereabouts in the house. This is especially useful for those caring for Alzheimer's and dementia patients who tend to stray when getting up to go to the bathroom at night. 

Rowe says the CareAlert system will go a long way toward protecting not only the patient, but the caregiver too.

"Caregiving and lack of sleep are related to heart disease," says Rowe. "Poor sleep is one of the reasons caregivers have poor health. When I was working on ways to provide caregivers better quality of sleep, I looked for systems and there were none. I realized that unless I invented a system that allowed them quality sleep, I was never going to have an impact on improving their sleep.''

Rowe partnered with others such as Stephen Greenstein and RoBrady Product Design to help her develop a system. This formed the genesis of Caregiver Watch, LLC, the company through which CareAlert will be sold.

Rowe says trials run on the CareAlert system resulted in 86 percent reduction in injuries to patients with dementia, and she hopes to begin a study that will identify ways to help caregivers relax that will coincide with the launch of the CareAlert system in June.

The ultimate goal of that research is to understand why caregiver health is worse as a result of the caregiving experience. All of the research will take place at the caregiver's home using Skype and iPad technologies along with a sleep interventionist, says Christina McCrae, an associate professor at the University of Florida. "We’ll be measuring for heart disease and see if they get better when sleep improves."

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Dr. Meredeth Rowe, Caregiver Watch, LLC 

Sylvia Albritton says she believes everyone has a story to tell. And now she has $1,000 to put her students' stories into a nicely bound cover.

Albritton received the money as a gift from Awesome Tampa Bay on Thursday, March 1, 2012. It is the second award Awesome has given to those whose work is having a positive impact on the Tampa Bay region.

Albritton teaches youth ages 14 to 18 at the Falkenburg Jail in Hillsborough County. Her students are facing adjudication as adults for crimes Albritton considers acts committed without thought for repercussions. Her writing program gives them an outlet for exploring their feelings about their lives and their actions.

"I retired after 35 years of teaching and I wasn’t tired," says Albritton. "I wanted to teach again. My thought was a traditional
middle or high school. But what I ended up in was a drug treatment facility for at-risk kids. And I loved it. Now I teach at the jail.

"I’ve learned that our youth oftentimes don’t have an outlet for expression. And I think it helps them to write. Sometimes it’s a thoughtless act and they don’t see the repercussions of it. This helps them confront that. I come home from work happy every day."

Albritton says she plans to use the money to create a bound book of her students' writing. "I spoke to my principal about soliciting more writing and artwork from the students and binding them in a book that addresses how we’d do things differently given the chance. Make it look like a professional text for the library at the school and maybe share with other programs as well. And you never know. I was told me that sometimes an award like this leads to other resources. I could just gather the papers together and staple them myself. But that's just not the same."

Awesome Tampa Bay is part of the Awesome Foundation, a national nonprofit that provides money to those making a positive difference in their communities. Albritton was chosen from nearly 70 applicants.

Writer:  Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Sylvia Albritton, Hillsborough County Jail

Ideas and inspiration often hit in unusual and distant places -- even the fields of Kyrgyzstan. 

At least that's what happened to Martin Clewis while working soybean fields alongside Kyrgyzstan farmers. He was forced to look for alternative power sources. It gave him an idea. When he returned home to Tampa, Clewis decided to open Eco Structures, a building contracting company that will provide solar-powered products to homeowners. And he is offering his services through JR Structures.

"I had just moved back from Central Asia growing soybeans with farmers there," explains Clewis. "What I noticed was their power needs were a challenge. It was through that experience that I got into alternate energy sources. So when we moved back to Tampa, I wanted to pursue that. My friend Jeff Darrey, who owns JR Structures, is interested in offering sustainable products and pursuing LEED certification for his commercial clients. So we came up with a plan to help each other."

Eco Structures will provide solar energy products that provide heated water, cooling and chemical maintenance for outdoor pools. 

"We're kind of taking a basket approach until we know what people are interested in," says Clewis. Products Eco Structures will offer include a water-based solar product that recirculates energy from the AC unit, and a solar chlorine generator that uses $10 worth of salt a year to generate chlorine from the salt through electrolysis. 

Clewis says he is still in the process of acquiring licenses and is currently working on building his website. But he is hoping that Eco Structures will evolve to the point where he can offer products that are not only sustainable, but aesthetically pleasing. 

"You can make artistic designs on panels like the ones used on solar-powered vehicles," says Clewis. "That goes beyond what most solar contractors can do. But that's what I'm really interested in, installing solar panels on a house with transparencies that provide dapple shade, and shaded areas around pools. They can look nice if you have an eye for it."

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Martin Clewis, Eco Structures

Using text phones to teach a social studies lesson. Showing the Wizard of Oz to teach economic history and principles. These are just a few of the things being shared with teachers to promote economic literacy to their students to prepare them to compete in a global marketplace. And State Farm just gave nearly $20K to generate more of the same.

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance contributed $19,000 to the Academy of Global Literacies at the Gus A. Stavros Center for Free Enterprise and Economic Education to support innovative professional development programs for K-12 educators throughout the Tampa Bay area.

"In order for students to have the knowledge and skills they're going to need to navigate an increasingly global economy they have to be financially literate," says Dick Puglisi, director of the Gus A. Stavros Center for Free Enterprise and Economic Education, and assistant dean of the USF College of Education. "And kids today are blogging, Twittering and communicating in ways we never did. How do we give teachers skills that connect with the ways kids are learning anyway? What we are striving to do is provide creative strategies for teachers so they themselves can be models of this type of technology in teaching them the skills they're going to need to be globally competitive."

"At the end of the day, it's the students who are our future workers," says Jose Soto, a State Farm spokesperson. "It's all about building the workforce in our community, and we need to empower teachers to do that."

State Farm has also been a strong supporter and community partner with the Stavros Center's state affiliate, the Florida Council on Economic Education, and the center's national affiliate, the Council for Economic Education.

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Sources: Dick Puglisi, The Gus A. Stavros Center for Free Enterprise and Economic Education; Jose Soto, State Farm

Bi-lingual or multilingual job seekers have an opportunity to work from home thanks to a national language services provider.

California-based Language Line Services plans to hire approximately 300 interpreters throughout the state of Florida to meet increased demand among its client base for multilanguage interpreters. Sixty-five of those jobs are estimated to be filled by Tampa Bay job seekers with second-language skills.

Language Line CEO Louis Provenzano says the company plans to hire 2,000 interpreters nationwide. "With the number of cultural consumers out there, our clients are finding if you speak to the customer in their native language, they're a lot more likely to buy," explains Provenzano. "Approximately 15 percent of the 2,000 we plan to hire are slated for Florida," he explains. "Florida is one of our top five states for recruiting and we're expecting to see approximately 20 to 25 percent of those to come from the Tampa Bay area. That translates to roughly 60 to 75 jobs in Tampa."

Provenzano says those hired can expect to make between $30,000 to $60,000, depending on work volume. Many interpreters are able to work from home and experience isn't necessary.

"It really doesn't depend on experience," Provenzano says. "We have one of the best training programs in the country. Some interpreters make as high as $60,000 depending on the volume of work due to overtime and demand. And they don't have to worry about gas or paying for meals because they'll be working from home and setting their own schedules."

Languages currently in demand include Mandarin, Russian, Vietnamese, Korean, Cantonese, Portuguese, Arabic, Polish, Spanish and French. Those interested with the language skills necessary can apply online.

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Louis Provenzano, Language Line Services

U.S. House Rep. Kathy Castor says that while the economy has shown some improvement, momentum must be maintained. That is why she is hosting a job fair on Saturday, March 3, 2012.

Castor is hosting the job fair from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Workforce Tampa Career Center at 9215 N. Florida Ave. More than 50 companies representing for-profit, nonprofit and government entities will be in attendance, including Amscot, Bright House, Department of Children & Families, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, Sweetbay, Home Depot, Nielsen and the University of South Florida.

Castor says the job fair evolved from a need expressed throughout the community in recent months.

"I've done six foreclosure prevention workshops," says Castor. "And when I asked around the community about doing another housing workshop the answer was, 'No. We need one on jobs.' ''

"The economy is getting better," continues Castor. "We've had 23 months of private sector job growth and the unemployment rate is down. We just need to keep the momentum going. We have many employers who are hiring. While we have some momentum, we have a way to go here. If we can put businesses in touch with talented people, that's a winning combination."

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Kathy Castor, 11th District Florida, U.S. Congress

A few Tampa Bay area students have created household gadgets meant to make life a little easier. 

Alex Kimball, Katie Burcaw and Ariane Custic entered prototypes of their innovative ideas in the University of South Florida's Young Innovators Competition on Feb. 10, 2012, at the university's Patel Center and walked away with money for themselves and their schools as well as other prizes. 

Alex Kimball, 11, a fifth-grader at Academy at the Lakes in Pasco County, won in the elementary school category for creating Sweet Spot for Sponges, an aluminum case for household sponge storage outfitted with a germ-killing LED light.

Kimball says her desire to keep the kitchen clean was the impetus for her creation. "Sponges are the No. 1 place for germs in the whole house," she says. "So I wanted to help fix that." She says the circuitry was the big challenge. "We ended up with an LED light," she explains. "Then we had to figure out the circuitry. And we had to find a divider to keep the sponge dry." 

Katie Burcaw, 12, is a sixth-grader at Martinez Middle School in Hillsborough. She created a large ornament outfitted with concealable tubing that makes watering a Christmas tree easier without bending under the tree. She calls it the Tree IV. 

Burcaw says her annoyance with watering the tree inspired her idea. "It was at Christmas time and it was my turn to water the tree," she explains. "And I kept getting sap in my hair and water on me. So I got an ornament off the tree, cut holes in it and attached a clear tube to the bottom so you wouldn't be able to see it against the Christmas tree. I attached a hook to it so it clicks onto the tree."

Ariane Custic, 15, a ninth-grader at Clearwater High School, created an integrated wall outlet/USB port, which not only makes charging smart phones easier but reduces toxic materials used in manufacturing its computer components by allowing users to plug the USB end of a charging cord directly into a wall outlet.

"For me this invention is perfect," she says. "I have so many things to charge: my phone, my iPod, my Kindle. So I knew it would make my life a whole lot easier. I did research to see if there was anything like it out there. There really wasn't."

The 2012 Young Innovators Competition was the fourth in an annual series. The competition is hosted by Innovation Express, founded and led by Anton Hopen, a USF alumnus and Tampa patent attorney. In addition to cash prizes for the girls and their schools, each was granted honorary membership in USF's Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors and are honored during the university's annual celebration of research achievement, ResearchOne.The winners were selected by a panel of innovation experts that included TVGoods.com CEO Kevin Harrington, Home Shopping Network host Bill Green; former Bay News 9 anchor and inventor Jen Holloway and USF innovation leaders.

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Sources: Alex Kimball, Katie Burcaw and Ariane Custic, USF Young Innovator Competition 

A University of South Florida (USF) alum has launched a company that produces a liquid bandage she plans to market to veterinarians, with the hopes of getting FDA approval to later sell for human use.

Dr. Kerriann Greenhalgh launched KeriCure, Inc in January 2011, which holds the exclusive worldwide rights to all medical applications of the technology behind its liquid bandage.

"What we have is a topical bandage product that is covered for sales in veterinary," explains Greenhalgh. "So that's where we're going to start. We're hoping to sell to vets in the next couple months. We're also filing for FDA approval for use on humans."

The bandage is a solid but elastic barrier that mirrors properties of the skin, providing a breathable film that covers damaged tissue. Because it's so flexible, it can provide protection for wounded parts of the body that would normally be difficult for conventional bandages to cover. The liquid bandage also is bacteria resistant. 

Greenhalgh says that while her experience in the private Research and Development sector helped her learn the business behind promoting her product, she owes much to USF for helping her develop both the product and the company. 

"I attended USF as undergrad, where I earned a chemistry degree," explains Greenhalgh. "I got to do research for Edward Turos, PhD, a professor there. He convinced me to stay and go to grad school. While I was there I was lucky enough to get a fellowship where I was required to develop a product for skin.

"As I was developing my product for preclinical trials and presenting it, I was hired to work for a company as a product manager. I got first FDA approval while I was working for them. When that company moved to Georgia, I didn't want to shelve my skin product any more. So I started doing research on how to go about getting it approved. Then I sat down with a group of colleagues at USF and they said go for it. And I did. Without USF, I wouldn't have been able to do all this."

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Kerriann Greenhalgh, KeriCure

Top officials from Tampa Bay business and economic entities joined U.S. Commerce Under Secretary Francisco Sanchez at the Port of Tampa on Monday, Feb. 6, to sign a Memo Of Intent (MOI) that serves to create collaborations and connections among trade exporters and government officials to build a business strategy that will attract more jobs to Tampa Bay.

"Individually none of us has the potential to fulfill and carry out on a sustained level an international trade," says Stuart Rogel, president and CEO of the Tampa Bay Partnership. "But collectively we can sustain and focus on areas where we can bear fruit." 

The entities represented at the MOI signing include the International Trade Administration, Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners, the City of Tampa, and their partners, the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority, Small Business Development Center at the University of South Florida, the Tampa Bay Partnership, the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation, the University of South Florida, the University of Tampa and the Tampa Port Authority. 

"Not only is this a sign of the Tampa Bay community coming together to advance international activities," says Rogel. "But the under secretary's [presence] represents an administration that wishes to double export activity over the next five years. Sanchez talked about how they're on track to meet that goal, which is in line with Florida Gov. Scott's goal to expand the state's export activity. So we're seeing this [MOI signing] as consistent with efforts on a state and federal level."

The signing is in part an answer to President Obama's National Export Initiative (NEI) to double U.S. commercial exports by the end of 2014.

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Stuart Rogel, Tampa Bay Partnership

Florida residents without bank accounts are the target of a new initiative called Bank On Florida that is designed to increase financial literacy and help people navigate the sometimes intimidating complexities of banking.

The Florida Prosperity Partnership launched Bank On Florida to bring together financial institutions and community partners throughout Tampa Bay to help residents access mainstream financial services and financial education.

"The whole idea behind Bank On Florida is to build on existing bank programs," says Bill Mills, director of strategic initiatives for Florida Prosperity Partnership. "We are trying to build the initiative on models used across the state. Most people [who don't currently have a bank] have lost a bank account due to bank fees. There are also people who have just never had a bank account. So if someone comes into Bank On Florida in Tampa Bay, that person will get financial education – learn how to use a bank account correctly. And then they'll be put with the correct financial institution, which varies. A credit union may make sense for them. It depends on how much they intend to keep in their account."

The program is based on successful models in about 100 cities around the country. Its goal is to increase financial stability by providing access to bank accounts and financial education, making it easier to save for the future, manage money and access credit and lower-interest loans.

A pilot Bank On program -- the first in Florida -- launched in St. Petersburg in August 2009 and has already opened more than 2,500 accounts, which made it the perfect place to launch the Bank On Florida program.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation [FDIC] estimates that more than 7 percent of Florida households are "unbanked,'' meaning no one in the household has any type of checking or savings account. 

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Bill Mills, Florida Prosperity Partnership

Two Tampa Bay entrepreneurs have launched an online service that they envision dominating the cloud computing market in coming years.

Jack Kennedy and Jared Rodriguez are currently beta testing KiteDesk, a cloud solution they launched in December 2011 that provides users with integrated personal, professional and public content. Jack Kennedy, KiteDesk CEO, says the KiteDesk solution is easier to use and easier on the pocketbook.

"We help companies move to the cloud," explains Kennedy. "It feels more like what they're used to. And they save money in the process. And for individuals, it brings everything into one user interface -- all their messages, sites, social networks, etc. -- into one place."

Kennedy says the idea came to the men -- both of whom attended the University of South Florida -- when they were working at a software development company. 

"We were working for a company that focused on building development tools," explains Kennedy. "And as we started working with Google apps, we began to see opportunities to work outside the development ecosystem. We started experimenting with APIs (application programing interfaces), took a step back and looked at what we were hearing from vendors and users. We wanted to make it easier with the end user. We wanted to provide a way for the user to have everything in one place."

Kennedy says once the beta test is complete, KiteDesk will be available to the general public. He also says he anticipates adding positions to his core staff in May or June 2012. Prices for KiteDesk services range from free to $2 per month.

Writer: Missy Kavanaugh
Source: Jack Kennedy, KiteDesk