Award Data

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is a member of the nuclear receptor (NR) superfamily that is instrumental in regulating genes involved in inflammation and immunosuppression and represents a major therapeutic target for asthma, arthritis, lupus, and other chronic disorders. A major challenge in GR drug design is the necessity to enhance GR-mediated anti-inflammator ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Barrier membranes are an important adjunct to regeneration therapy aimed at restoring the form and function of the mouth. Commercially available barrier membranes are used in dental surgeries to help retain bone grafting materials, to help exclude epithelium and connective tissue from entering into sites of desired bone and ligament regeneration, or for the com ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The long-range goal of this project is to restore functional movement to low-functioning stroke patients using a novel therapeutic regimen and robotic device called AMES, an acronym for Assisted Movement with Enhanced Sensation. In AMES-as it is currently used-the patient's affected limb is moved cyclically with the AMES robotic device while the sensation of ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): There are currently between 500,000 and 2.5 million leaking underground fuel storage tanks in the United States. Soluble organic compounds that enter the groundwater from these tanks can be a major hazard to public health and the environment. Two contaminate classes are of particular concern: (1) BTEX fuel additives consisting of benzene, ethyl benzene, toluene ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): We propose to identify an optimal short carbon chain lipid species to be used as a surrogate for membranes in a novel and improved blood coagulation factor assays that will improve rapid diagnosis of coagulation disorders. Blood coagulation protects the integrity of damaged blood vessels and is localized specifically to cells at a site of injury by exposure of ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): There is a strong need in drug discovery for cellular assays that better predict human responses to drugs. A key technical hurdle has been the difficulty of incorporating 3-dimensional extracellular matrix into a powerful assay format that is compatible with the high throughput approaches used for early drug discovery. In this proposal we intend to develop the ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Kinases are the most intensively screened class of enzymes being targeted for therapeutic intervention because of their central role in regulating the function of other biomolecules. Strategies for developing selective kinase inhibitors are evolving rapidly, creating a demand for more flexible methods for measuring kinase activity in high throughput screening c ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): More than 50% of drugs on the market target G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). Among the most important of these are drugs used to treat neurological disorders, such as pain relievers, antidepressants and anti-psychotics, as well drugs used for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. The relatively recent discovery of a ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Leukocyte recruitment is central to inflammation, and there is intense focus on inhibiting the process both for chronic inflammatory disorders and for conditions where inflammation plays a contributory role, such as atherosclerosis. Whereas current anti-inflammatory drugs such as NSAIDs target secondary effects that are induced after inflammation is already est ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Stuttering is a communication disorder characterized by disfluencies that are frequent and disruptive to communication. Clinicians extensively use disfluency counts to decide whether a client should be treated, to assess treatment progress, and to document treatment outcomes. Clinicians often do disfluency counts in real-time as a speaker is talking. However, ...