The University
of Nebraska Medical Center has received a record $52.3 million in total
research grant funding from June 2003 through March 2004 (three fiscal
quarters) and is now on target to break the $60 million barrier for
first time
in a single fiscal year. The $16.6 million in federal research grants
UNMC
received during the third quarter (January, February and March) helped
boost
the year to new heights.
“The UNMC corps
of researchers is showing its true excellence,” said Thomas Rosenquist,
Ph.D.,
vice chancellor for research. “The growth in funding exceeds our
long-range
predictions, but is consistent with what we have discovered recently
about the
energy and ability of these outstanding investigators.
“Soon, we will
have filled all of the best UNMC research space, including the Durham Research Center,
with NIH-funded,
alpha investigators. This is a great problem to have, and we hope that
we will
have the opportunity for adding even more 21st-century facilities, to
let our
investigators realize their full potential for advancing biomedical
science.”
Some of UNMC’s
research highlights during the third quarter included:
Oksana
Lockridge, Ph.D., professor in the Eppley Institute, received $950,000
for a
study dealing with molecular toxicology and identification of chemical
agent
toxicology. Her grant is from the U.S. Department of Defense. Part of
the money
will be used to purchase mass spectrometers.
Mass spectrometers identify all of the proteins in the body that
react
to organophosphorus pesticides. Dr.
Lockridge’s research is aimed at being able to diagnose low dose
exposure and
understand illnesses such as chemical sensitivity and Gulf War Illness.
Timothy
Greiner, M.D., associate professor in the department of pathology and
microbiology, will receive $290,000 per year for three years from the
Lymphoma
Research Foundation to study mantle cell lymphoma – a form of cancer
that affects
several thousand patients each year. DNA from the mantle cell tumors
will be
analyzed for changes in the structure. Dr. Greiner’s research team will
try to determine how
some genes are turned off that control the lymphoma cell growth. They
also will
study methods to turn the genes back on to help current chemotherapy
drugs kill the lymphoma cells. The
overall goal is to improve the survival of patients with mantle cell
lymphoma,
which on average live 3-4 years after the diagnosis of their lymphoma.
Pascale Lane, M.D.,
professor and associate chair for research in the department of
pediatrics-section of nephrology, received $330,750 to study the impact
of
puberty on the kidneys in diabetes. Many
kidney disorders, including kidney disease of diabetes mellitus, get
worse
during puberty. This project explores the role of sex steroids in this
deterioration of kidney function. By understanding the reasons that
maturation
accelerates kidney disease, Dr. Lane’s research team hopes to be able
to
develop new treatment options for these patients.
Robert Lewis,
Ph.D., professor at the Eppley Institute, received $227,851 to identify
novel
mechanisms inside the cell that mediate the response to insulin. The
research
focuses on proteins that control the creation of adipose (fat) tissue.
Adipose tissue is the most insulin sensitive cell type in the body. Too
much
adipose tissue (obesity) is related to certain types of diabetes. Understanding the cellular mechanisms that
regulate adipose tissue formation is likely to contribute to novel
methods that
can reduce insulin resistance and diabetes.
Christopher
Kratochvil, M.D., associate professor in the department of psychiatry,
received
$153,538 to study the pharmacological treatment of young children with
attention
deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The funding is for a second year
of a
five-year grant supported by the National Institute of Mental Health.
The goals
of the project are to further develop the infrastructure and ability to
conduct
clinical research in young children with mental illness and to support
a
clinical trial in young children with ADHD. The clinical trial will be
a
multi-site study coordinated by UNMC and conducted at UNMC, Columbia University
in New York, N.Y.
and Duke University
Medical Center
in Durham, N.C.