Award Data

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Menopause is associated with about a 10-15 pound weight gain and a redistribution of fat to the abdomen. The increase in abdominal fat, also known as visceral fat is known to produce cytokines that cause inflammation which can lead to the metabolic syndrome. The metabolic syndrome represents a major public health burden because it increases the risk of cardiova ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men, and the second leading cause of cancer death. However, when prostate cancer is diagnosed in its early stages, it can be effectively treated and cured. Combined with the digital rectal examination, the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test has been widely used to detect prostate cancer in its early stages. ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Methamphetamine (MA) dependence is associated with neuropsychiatric side effects that make the addiction extremely challenging to treat. Patients seeking treatment experience ongoing impairments in cognition, mood, and motivation. Currently, there are no FDA-approved pharmacotherapies for MA dependence. The goal of this proof-of-concept research project is test ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): HIV continues to be a major public health problem in the United States, but there has been limited penetration of HIV prevention services in many healthcare settings. Novel methods for seamlessly integrating HIV prevention into medical practice are needed. The proposed Phase 1 STTR project seeks to establish the feasibility of designing key components of an inn ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Over 7.5 million high school students participate in high school sports programs and an additional 2 million students join these athletic teams each year. Adolescent athletes are at risk for using performance enhancing drugs, such as anabolic steroids, unregulated sport supplements, and illicit drugs and alcohol. Unfortunately, few evidence-based substance abus ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Bacterial biofilm formation on medical implants is a serious clinical problem. Biofilms can turn a simple implant into a serious complication. Recently we showed that the covalent attachment of micrograms of organo-selenium to the surface of an orthodontic device will inhibit the formation of a biofilm without harmful side-effects. This has recently (2009) led ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The most common artificial voice source for post-laryngectomy speech rehabilitation is the hand-held buzzer or electrolarynx (EL). This device is relatively easy to use and enables most laryngectomees to verbally communicate, but with reduced intelligibility and markedly degraded naturalness. In addition, EL speech is often described as robotic and monotone, at ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Mucopolysaccharidosis type II (MPS II, Hunter syndrome) is an X-linked recessive inherited disorder caused by absence of iduronate-2-sulfatase, resulting in systemic accumulation of glycosaminoglycans heparan sulphate and dermatan sulphate. Affected individuals suffer from skeletal abnormalities, organomegaly, life- threatening obstructive airway disease, and, ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently classified carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as a new chemical substance. Consequently, CNTs are now subject to regulatory controls that require inventory control, quantification of CNT amounts, and possibly toxicity tests. However, rapidly and inexpensively quantifying the CNTs in commercially available material and ass ...

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are common flame retardants used to reduce the risk of fire in a wide variety of products, such as mattresses, furniture, home electronics, textiles, upholstery fabrics, carpet, and children's toys. As a consequence, wide spread occurrence in the environment and bioaccumulation through various exposure routes have been rev ...