State agency boosts funding for OSU researchers to pursue medical breakthroughs

Friday, August 21, 2020

Eight Oklahoma State University health researchers have been awarded funding through the Oklahoma Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology (OCAST).

Their projects are among 29 health related research projects to receive a share of $1.24 million in funding from the state agency’s Oklahoma Health Research Program. The projects were approved last week following a review process of 130 submitted applications.

“In this day and time, the importance of medical, biomedical and health research is on the forefront of everyone’s minds,” said Dr. Kenneth Sewell, OSU vice president for research. “OSU researchers from a wide array of basic and applied disciplines are making groundbreaking discoveries to improve human health. This OCAST funding is a critical resource to ensure these breakthroughs continue in Oklahoma research institutions.”

OCAST is a state agency with a mission to expand and diversify Oklahoma’s economy by supporting research and development of new projects, processes and industries. The Oklahoma Science and Technology Research and Development Board approved Oklahoma Health Research Program proposals ranging from ways to prevent Type 2 diabetes to those exploring strategies to reduce the rate of suicide and other significant health issues.

This year’s OSU recipients and the focus of their research projects include:

• Ramesh Kaipa — the role of altered auditory feedback and principles of motor learning in improving speech intelligibility in people with Parkinson’s disease
• Aurelie Azoug — a smart skin to treat and prevent pressure ulcers
• Tony Wells — identifying concealed suicide risk via implicit cognition
• Matthew Cabeen — regulation of P. Aeruginosa biofilm formation by a DNA-binding protein
• Erika Lutter — manipulation of host kinases by chlamydia trachomatis
• Sam R. Emerson — validity and reproducibility of clinically feasible postprandial testing
• Veronique Lacombe — the sarcoplasmic reticulum calcium ATPase pump as a major regulator of glucose metabolism: a novel target for diabetic patients
• Lin Liu — role of Tankryase 2 in lung innate immunity

MEDIA CONTACT: Mack Burke | Editorial Coordinator | 405.744.5540 | mack.burke_iv@okstate.edu