Oklahoma State University health projects receive OCAST funding
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Five Oklahoma State University research projects received funding in the latest round of awards from the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology’s Oklahoma Health Research Program. Research funded under the program investigates the causes, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of human diseases and disabilities and facilitates the development of innovative health care products and services, according to OCAST. In total, OSU researchers will receive more than $670,000 to support their work.
Dr. Robert Alderson, an assistant professor of psychology, received $135,000 to study attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). He will work to identify the potential core deficits of the disorder – features that underlie clinical symptoms and are universally present in those with the disorder. His study will be the first to experimentally test opposing potential core deficits. Alderson says treatments that target the core deficits will be much more effective than those targeting only the symptoms.
Dr. Junpeng Deng, an assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology, also received $135,000. His work will focus on Parkinson’s disease, specifically investigating the enzymatic mutations known to cause the condition. Deng says there is a critical need to more clearly determine the role the mutations play in the development of the devastating disease.
Dr. Wendy Picking, an associate professor of microbiology and molecular genetics, was awarded $135,000 to explore the use of bacterial proteins as a vaccine for Salmonella. While vaccination has perhaps been the most broadly powerful disease prevention approach in modern medicine, the continued transmission of infectious diseases in the U.S. and developing nations underscores the need for more effective vaccines, Picking says.
Dr. Yingmei Liu, an assistant professor of physics, received $134,400 to develop a new magnetic scanning microscope. The new equipment is sensitive enough to detect tiny magnetic variations in the heart and brain and will help researchers determine the effectiveness of a potential new drug by providing a reproducible and unbiased result between baseline and follow-up investigations.
Dr. Daqing Piao, an assistant professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, was awarded $135,000 to develop a technology able to rapidly access the condition of a transplantable liver. Piao says such a technology is urgently needed to help hepatic surgeons determine if an available organ is suitable for transplant. He will collaborate with Drs. Kenneth E. Bartels, G. Reed Holyoak and Jerry W. Ritchey from the OSU Center for Veterinary Health Sciences on this project.
As the first OCAST program created by the legislature, the Oklahoma Health Research program exists to: (1) strengthen the competitiveness of Oklahoma health researchers for national research funds, (2) improve health care for Oklahomans and (3) strengthen the state’s health care industry. For more information, visit www.ocast.ok.gov.