Barnett Institute Scientists Devise New, Streamlined Methods to Characterize Complexity of Biopharmaceuticals

Barnett Institute Director Barry Karger and Barnett Faculty Fellows John Engen and William Hancock are quoted in an article in Chemical & Engineering News describing the techniques aiding the development and manufacturing of biologics as well as the challenge researchers face in closing the gap between analytical data and clinical knowledge.

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Preparation and Targeted Delivery of a New Class of Photo Activated Anticancer Agents

A study published in Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry by Graham Jones, Professor and Chair of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, and Vladimir Torchilin, Distinguished Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, outlines methodology for the chemical synthesis of versatile photo-Bergman enediyne building blocks and their conjugates. The research describes chemical synthesis of a new class of anticancer agent, inspired by the acute myeloid leukemia drug, Mylotarg (Wyeth Ayerst). The paper demonstrates that light can be used to activate the drugs, which are coupled to cell specific antibodies to enable selective targeting.

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Enabling Microfluidic Capture of Endothelial Progenitor Cells

A study performed by Shashi Murthy, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, and his team describes the characterization of endothelial progenitor cell adhesion to a range of antibody-coated surfaces under fluid shear conditions. The study is a foundation for future research that may lead to microfluidic devices that can capture these vital cells for applications in tissue engineering as well as cardiovascular diagnostics. The findings have been published in the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Journal.

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Awards and Contributions Support Northeastern?s Biotechnology Research Effort

Professor of Biology Joseph Ayers is part of a multidisciplinary team of computer scientists, engineers, and biologists that has been awarded a five-year, $10M NSF Expeditions in Computing grant to develop micro flying robots with the technology to emulate the brain, body, and collective behavior of bees.

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In July, Penny Beuning, Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, received an NSF Faculty Early-Career Development grant to study how cells adapt to DNA-damaging agents. The $994,655 grant will fund a five-year project that seeks to understand the role protein complexes play in how a cell?s DNA molecules react to exposure to a variety of commonplace, potentially damaging agents, including free radicals and ultraviolet light.

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A $341,952 award from the U.S. Army plus a generous $70,000 discount from BD Bioscience has made possible the purchase of a BD FACSAria cell sorter for the Antimicrobial Discovery Center. The cell sorter will enable center members to analyze single cells in a population and to sort interesting subsets of cells out of the entire population for further experiments. The Antimicrobial Discovery Center is directed by Professor of Biology Kim Lewis.

Northeastern's Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences has received a generous donation of equipment and disposable supplies from Pfizer, Inc. The department is grateful to Pfizer and to Steve Faraci, Chief Operating Officer of Pfizer's Research Technology Center and a member of Northeastern's Biotechnology Industrial Advisory Board, for facilitating the donation.

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson?s Research has awarded a $187,500 grant to Professor Barbara Waszczak and Associate Professor Robert Schatz of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences to further study a new treatment to stop the progression of Parkinson?s disease in its early stages. A grant Dr. Waszczak received from the Fox Foundation in 2007 to investigate the efficacy of delivering a protein called GDNF through the nose resulted in positive findings. The next steps, funded by this new grant, will determine if the delivery method results in nasal toxicity and how much of the protein actually reaches the target area of the brain.

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Mansoor Amiji, Professor and Acting Chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, and his colleague Nikos Soukos, Director of the Applied Molecular Photomedicine Laboratory at the Forsyth Institute, have received an NIH R21 $475,000 two-year grant to study nanoparticle-based antimicrobial photochemotherapy. Dr. Amiji's lab will receive a sub-contract of $150,000 over two years.

Of Note

In August, John Engen, Associate Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, received the Arthur F. Findeis Award for Achievements by a Young Analytical Scientist from representatives of the American Chemical Society and Philip Morris USA at the ACS National Meeting in Washington, D.C.

Lara Jabr-Milane, a PhD student in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, recently won the 2009 Boston Area International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) Poster Competition. Ms. Jabr-Milane, a participant in the NCI/NSF funded pre-doctoral IGERT Nanomedicine Fellowship Program, is focusing her research on multi-drug resistant cancer. She is advised by Mansoor Amiji, Professor and Acting Chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

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Amy Kallmerten, a PhD student in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, has received CEM Corporation?s 2009 M.J. Collins Award for outstanding research by a student in the field of microwave chemistry. The award, presented to one researcher each year, recognizes Ms. Kallmerten?s research and innovative laboratory techniques. Ms. Kallmerten is advised by Graham Jones, Professor and Chair of Chemistry and Chemical Biology.

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Chemical Engineering PhD student Courtney Pfluger was invited by the Education and Younger Chemists Committees of the American Chemical Society?s Northeastern Section to present her research at a symposium conducted by the Gesellschaft Deutscher Chemiker (German Chemical Society) in Essen, Germany. Ms. Pfluger is advised by Rebecca Carrier, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering.

Upcoming Campus Events

On Wednesday, September 23, the 28th Barnett Lecture in Bioanalytical Chemistry will be held. Dr. Richard Smith, Battelle Fellow and Chief Scientist of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, will present "Advances in Proteomics for Biomarker Discovery and Validation." The event will take place from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. in the Raytheon Amphitheater, 240 Egan Center with a reception at 3:30. For more information, contact Felicia Martin at 617-373-2867 or fe.martin@neu.edu.

On Thursday, September 24, the Barnett Institute and the College of Criminal Justice will co-sponsor the 10th Annual Francine and Michael Saferstein Memorial Lectures. Dr. Paul Giannelli, Albert J. Weatherhead III & Richard W. Weatherhead Professor of Law at Case Western Reserve University, will present "Developments in Forensic Science." The event will take place from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the Raytheon Amphitheater, 240 Egan Center with a reception at 2:30. For more information, contact Felicia Martin at 617-373-2867 or fe.martin@neu.edu.

For more information on events, see Upcoming Events.
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Northeastern University
Biotechnology Initiative

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