Award Data

Neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) is a rare genetic disorder that affects about 1 in 25,000 individuals globally. While usually benign, these tumors result in severe morbidity and mortality in affected individuals. Almost all NF2 patients lose their hearing, and many lose the ability to walk and even to see. NF2 patients’ average age at death is 36 years, many of whom die in adolescence or early ad ...

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Lack of exercise is a major cause of secondary health conditions, especially for people with paralysis, for whom participation in physical activity is especially difficult. Hybrid functional electrical stimulation (H- FES) exercise enables vigorous, total body physical activity for people with paralysis. However, existing H-FES devices are neither affordable nor accessible ...

The goal of this project is to prevent deaths from opioid overdoses through developing and commercializing the Opioid Rapid Response System (ORRS). This system is designed to reduce the cost of the opioid epidemic by developing standardized and effective procedures for recruiting and training citizen responders to use the PulsePoint app to administer life-saving naloxone/Narcan. This i-Corps suppl ...

Abstract In normal pregnancy, the cervix remains closed until term and then dilates under the influence of uterine contractions. In cases of cervical insufficiency (CI), the cervix dilates in the second trimester in the absence of uterine contractions, which leads to a preterm birth. Infants born prematurely are at risk of lifelong morbidities including chronic lung disease, feeding difficulties, ...

PROJECT SUMMARY In light of the opioid crises, minimizing postoperative pain and postoperative opioid requirements to reduce chronic opioid dependency among surgical patients have become major concerns for surgeons and anesthesiologists. Effective intraoperative nociception control can mitigate these concerns. Unfortunately, existing nociceptive monitoring tools use indicators that are inherently ...

Rates of obesity have steadily increased in the United States, with approximately 50 percent of Americans projected to be classified as obese by 2030. Interestingly, obesity even seems to be a risk factor for the severity of illness in response to COVID-19 disease. Although behavioral (dieting and exercise), pharmacological, and surgical approaches exist for weight loss, many individuals who lose ...

We have developed a novel low-cost, multi-functional blood coagulation sensor that can measure a patient’s coagulation status within less than 10 minutes using a 25mL drop of blood. This device addresses the critical unmet need to identify and manage patients with an elevated risk of life-threatening bleeding or thrombosis, the major causes of in-hospital preventable death. In addition, our inno ...

PROJECT SUMMARY The ability of dying cells to activate antigen presenting cells (APCs) is carefully controlled to avoid unwarranted inflammatory responses. Thus, tumor cells avoid aggravating APCs by efficiently simulating regular dying cells which following phagocytosis do not trigger inflammatory responses required for efficient cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) priming. However, dying tumor cells co ...

Project Summary/Abstract Counterintuitively, the incidence and societal impact of oral and oropharyngeal cancer are increasing in the US despite the markedly decreased use of tobacco products. This trend is exacerbated by the fact that almost two- thirds of patients have lymph node or distant metastases at the time of diagnosis, dramatically reducing 5-year survival rates. Oral cavity cancers are ...

Abstract Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) is a fatal muscle disease with a predicted incidence of 1 in 5000 males. DMD results from mutations in the gene encoding dystrophin, a 427 kDa scaffolding protein responsible for providing a mechanical link between the muscle fiber actin cytoskeleton and laminin in the extracellular matrix. The 7β1 integrin is a transmembrane linkage system in skeleta ...