Research @ Wayne

New Online Training for HIC and AIC Investigators

Julie O'Connor — Tue, 13 May 2008 03:17:43 +0000

The Human Investigation Committee (HIC) and the Animal Investigation Committee are no longer using the WSU On-line Responsible Conduct in Research (RCR) training program to fulfill training requirements. Instead, the Committees require that all investigators and study staff (i.e. co-investigators and key personnel) take online training modules developed by the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI). This commercially available program is widely used at research institutions nationwide and is updated automatically to provide the latest regulatory information and guidance.

The CITI program has completely replaced the former RCR training program; therefore, all investigators and personnel will be required to complete the CITI training even if the RCR modules were taken in the past. This new training must be completed prior to obtaining approval for new protocol submissions and for continuation approval of ongoing protocols as of June 1, 2008. Training must also be completed by HIC and AIC members and all new personnel added by amendment must also take the CITI training. It is the expectation of the Committees that all WSU research personnel will complete the CITI training within one year if a new protocol is not submitted before that time.

Please visit the HIC and AIC websites (www.hic.wayne.edu and www.aic.wayne.edu) for more informatoin about completing CITI training.

School of Medicine Team Receives $1.5+ million NCI/NIH grant

Julie O'Connor — Tue, 13 May 2008 03:17:36 +0000

Dr. Shijie Sheng, associate professor of Pathology in the School of Medicine and the Karmanos Cancer Institute, along with collaborators Drs. Michael Cher and Ricardo Bonfil of Urology, Dr. Margarida Bernardo and Dr. Xiaohua Li were awarded $1,561,440 from the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health for the research study, “A Role of Novel Serpin Maspin in Prostate Tumor/Bone Interaction.”

In this study, this team of researchers will test the hypothesis that maspin blocks the viscious cycle of prostate tumor/bone interaction, which underlies the high propensity of prostate cancer to spread to the bone.

Assistant Professor of Chemistry Receives NSF Career Award

Julie O'Connor — Tue, 13 May 2008 03:17:30 +0000

Dr. David Rueda, assistant professor of Chemistry in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, was recently awarded a $775,000 NSF CAREER award for the project titled, “RNA Folding Dynamics by Single Molecule Temperature Jump Kinetics.”

The project will study RNA molecules that play an essential role in numerous cellular processes such as protein translation and control of gene expression. Dr. Rueda is interested in understanding how these biopolymers fold into functional structures. He and his team will be developing new technology that combines single molecule detection with laser induced temperature jump kinetics. Their experiments are expected to uncover important details of this fundamentally important process.

Congratulations Dr. Rueda!

WSU Researcher is Lead Scientist for Emmy Winning Sports Show…

Julie O'Connor — Tue, 13 May 2008 03:17:22 +0000

For the past year, Dr. Cynthia Bir, associate professor of Biomedical Engineering in the College of Engineering, has jetted back and forth from Detroit to Hollywood to serve as the lead scientist for the Emmy Award winning show, “Sports Science” that airs on Fox Sports Network on Sunday evenings at 9 p.m.

The show, nominated for four Emmy’s including Technical Achievement with Dr. Bir at the helm, examines dramatic sports injuries and attempts to answer questions such as “Does protective gear really protect?” The show, which appeals to even non-sport buffs, applies tools developed in Bir’s lab to record, measure and map the speed, force and range of the human body, specifically the athlete. The result is more than just entertainment - it’s educational as well.

When Dr. Bir isn’t busy in Hollywood, she along with co-investigators Drs. Mark Haacke, John Hannigan and Pamela VandeVord are ramping up research efforts to determine why so many soldiers are returning from Iraq with mild to moderate trauma to the brain after being exposed to the pressure wave caused by roadside bombs with symptoms often associated with mild to moderate trauma to the brain.

The project funded with nearly $800,000 from the Office of Naval Research, will attempt to identify key, unanswered questions such as: “How is the pressure wave transmitted through the body? How is the pressure causing shock and injury to the brain cells?”

The team will also investigate the effectiveness of drugs both before and after exposure to the air blasts, with the goal to identify a biomarker and an effective drug treatment that can be provided to the medical staff in the field as both preventative and treatment tools.

Neuroscience Symposium - May 31

Julie O'Connor — Tue, 13 May 2008 03:17:15 +0000

Wayne State University will be host to the 39th annual Michigan Chapter of the Society for Neuroscience Meeting/Symposium on Saturday, May 31st from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the McGregor Memorial Conference Center. The event will feature neuroscience research focusing on human cognition and perception, and how these important functions deterioriate due to aging and Alzheimer’s disease, the most common cause of dementia afflicting 24 million people worldwide.

Keynote speakers include Dr. Scott Moffat of WSU’s Institute of Gerontology and Department of Psychology and Dr. Charles Duffy of the Center for Visual Science at Rochester University.

For registration and further information, please visit http://neuroscience.science.wayne.edu/Site/Welcome.html