Friday, 29 June 2007
Jake Schaefer and Brian Kreiser awarded National Science Foundation grant to
study patterns of species diversity in fish
One of the greatest challenges in biology is to explain
the levels and patterns of species diversity. Hybrid
zones, where closely related species co-occur and
hybridize, provide an ideal setting in which to study
the processes that generate and maintain species
diversity. This research will combine field
observations, controlled laboratory experiments and
modern molecular tools to address fundamental questions
regarding the distributional patterns observed among
three topminnow species in the Fundulus notatus species
complex. Throughout the Midwestern and Southern United
States, the species encounter one another in numerous
hybrid zones, making them an ideal group for study. The
proposed research will comprehensively address the
evolutionary history of the F. notatus species group and
will increase our understanding of the role evolutionary
and ecological processes play in producing and
maintaining the species diversity we observe today.
Moreover, this research has important conservation
implications and will be of interest to various state
agencies.
Drs. Faqing Huang
and Yanlin Guo Awarded NIH
Grant to Develop a Novel RNA Interference-Based
Technique to Repress Cancer Cell Growth
Cancer is a leading cause of death world wide. More than 1 million people every year in the US alone are diagnosed for various cancers. Caner is characterized by uncontrolled abnormal cell growth and the ability of those cells to spread, which is known as matastasis. For the past several decades, intense scientific effort has been devoted to understanding this disease and to development of theraputic drugs. Recently, a technique involving gene knockdown by small interfering RNA (siRNA) has been developed to repress cancer cell growth, but therapeutically acceptable methods to deliver siRNA are currently unavailable.
Capitalizing on recent RNA bio-conjugation methods developed in the Huang laboratory (Chenistry & Biochemistry), this NIH supported research will develop a novel folate receptor [FR]-based siRNA delivery strategy against specific target genes in cancer cells. FR is a molecule that is highly expressed in cancer cells. This study, which integrates the expertise of
Dr. Huang in chemistry/RNA and Dr. Guo in cell biology, will use folate-conjugated siRNA to target a cancer cell marker, urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR). They will test the hypothesis that down-regulation uPAR expression in cancer cells by floate-conjugated siRNA will effectively inhibit the growth of tumor cells. Results from this research may lead to the development of strategies for FR-mediated delivery of siRNA against specific targets. This knowledge could be valuable for the development of siRNA-based therapy for cancer.
|
