Barnett Institute Launches New Center for Advanced Regulatory Analysis

With the help of a generous $3 million leadership gift from Louis Barnett B'44, H'77, and his family, the Barnett Institute of Chemical and Biological Analysis, under the direction of Barry Karger, will launch a new Center for Advanced Regulatory Analysis. The Center will play a critical role in ensuring drug safety and quality for all consumers by focusing on the regulatory analysis of biotechnology products including biosimilars. The Center will also serve as a resource to pharmaceutical companies developing new drugs.

> Read an article.

Pharmaceutical Sciences Professor and Student Find Mucin a Barrier to Pancreatic Cancer Drug

Robert Campbell, Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Ph.D. student Ashish Kalra have found that reducing the mucin on a tumor cell's surface not only increases the effect of 5-FU significantly, it may also contribute to a decrease in the amount of drug needed to get the same therapeutic result. The goal of their research is to help improve the efficacy of drugs and limit the amount of toxic drugs needed for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

> Read an article.

Biology Researcher Finds First Ever Evidence of Natural Disease Resistance in Corals

A study performed by Steven Vollmer, Assistant Professor of Biology at Northeastern's Marine Science Center, used genotype information and field monitoring of White Band Disease to find that six percent of staghorn coral genotypes are naturally resistant to the disease. Identifying, protecting and farming these disease resistant corals is a critical step in the process of recovering tropical coral reefs that have become drastically altered by disease epidemics.

> Read an article.

Imaging Targeted Fluorescent Probes With High-Speed Imaging System a Significant Advantage for Investigating Disease and Tissue Function in Animal Models

A study performed by Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Mark Niedre and his colleague Professor Vasilis Ntziachristos of the Technical University of Munich, has shown that the technique of "early photon tomography" allows significantly improved three dimensional optical imaging of lung carcinomas in mice versus conventional methods. The approach used a high-speed laser and imager to detect the earliest-transmitted and therefore minimally scattered light through the animal. Combined with a molecularly-targeted fluorescent probe, the technique resolved not only the tumor but also biochemical changes in adjacent tissue, thus revealing the spread and progression of the disease. The research was recently published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

> Learn more.

Northeastern Receives Research Awards

The National Institutes of Health have awarded Northeastern a $2.7 million grant to help develop a targeted therapy to combat a contagious and potentially lethal bacterial pathogen commonly found in hospital and nursing home settings called Clostridium difficile (C. difficile). The five-year international project, led by Kim Lewis, Professor of Biology and Director of the Antimicrobial Discovery Center, aims to create a combination therapy method for humans by disabling the resistance mechanisms for the natural antimicrobial berberine.

> Learn more.

The National Science Foundation has awarded Northeastern a $410,000 grant to study how nature designs enzymes and protein molecules that serve as highly specific catalysts for chemical reactions in living systems. The proposal that won the award was based on findings that Chemistry Ph.D. student Heather Brodkin discussed in her thesis. Ms. Brodkin is advised by Mary Jo Ondrechen, Professor, and Penny Beuning, Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology.

> Learn more.

Of Note
The American Chemical Society has named John Engen, Associate Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, the 2009 recipient of the prestigious Arthur F. Findeis Award for Achievements by a Young Analytical Scientist. The award recognizes and encourages Dr. Engen's outstanding research contributions to the field of analytical chemistry.

> Read more.

Representing the Boston Student Chapter of the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) at the Society's 2008 annual meeting, Pharmaceutical Sciences Ph.D. student Padmaja Magadala tied as the winner of the graduate level International Student Poster Competition. Her poster was entitled, "Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor-Targeted Engineered Gelatin Nanovectors for Gene Delivery and Transfection in Pancreatic Cancer Cells." Ms. Magadala is advised by Mansoor Amiji, Chair of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

> Read more.

Upcoming Campus Events

On May 4th, the Barnett Institute will hold the Dieter and Inge Hoehn Lectures in Bioanalytical Chemistry. Dr. Gary Siuzdak, Senior Director of the Center for Mass Spectrometry and Associate Professor of Molecular Biology at Scripps Research Institute and Dr. John Ryals, CEO of Metabolon, Inc. will present on the subject of metabolomics. A reception will be held from 2:00 to 2:30 p.m. in the Raytheon Amphitheater, Egan Center. The lectures will follow from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. For more information, contact Felicia Martin at 617-373-2867 or fe.martin@neu.edu.

On May 8th, the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences will present its 5th Annual Research Showcase featuring Dr. Philip A. Sharp of MIT as the keynote speaker. The event begins at 8:00 a.m. in the Curry Student Center Ballroom and is free of charge. For a list of speakers and to register online, go to
www.pharmsci.neu.edu/2009PharmSciShowcase.htm.

On May 20, the Center for Drug Discovery will hold its 7th Annual Symposium on Current Trends in Drug Abuse Research. The event will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the Raytheon Amphitheater, Egan Center. For more information, contact Sarah Strassburger, 617-373-7866 or s.strassburger@neu.edu.

For more information on events, see Upcoming Events.
For a map and directions to campus, click here.

Northeastern University
Biotechnology Initiative

Providing practical solutions to the biotechnology and medical industries through cutting-edge translational research and education.