Research Digest

Celebrating Creativity and Scholarship

An annual gathering of more than 600 writers and scholars from around the world, UofL's Twentieth Century Literature Conference celebrates the academic, creative, and cultural contributions of the last 100 years of literature.

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Synthetic Peptides May Control Some Types of Cancer, Ease Arthritis

Wanli Ma, a graduate student in chemistry, and Dr. Arno Spatola.

U of L researchers have patented synthetic peptides that may help control the spread of some types of cancers and prevent joint destruction caused by rheumatoid arthritis.

The short chains of amino acids can inhibit the enzymes that contribute to arthritis by breaking down collagen in connective tissue. Similar enzymes help tumor cells break out of their surrounding webbing, leading to the spread of tumors.

The new inhibitors could prevent degradation of the webbing, at least retarding the spread. Researchers Arno Spatola, Robert Gray, and Krzysztof Darlak decided which structures of modified peptides work best. By coming up with better molecules as enzyme inhibitors, the scientists hope their work will lead to improved treatments for diseases and wound healing and other topical applications.

Tiny Detectors May Be Headed for Space

Probing the central cores of vast galaxies someday may depend on tiny radiation detectors that University of Louisville scientists are testing for NASA. Associate Professor of Physics Karl Pitts says the group is using laser machining to refine the patented detectors, which he likens to miniature Geiger counters. The imaging devices are to detect gamma rays from black holes and other high-energy objects in space—something that cannot be done from this planet. Other more earthly applications for the detectors include digital X-ray cameras for low-cost medical imaging. The lab group of physicists, electrical engineers, and students is making prototypes of large-area detectors and testing them for possible application in a satellite for gamma-ray astrophysics. The work involves several schools and the Goddard Space Flight Center.

Michael Byrne and Carol Shipley-Sims, $146,700, Kentucky Council on Higher Education, "Professional Education Preparation Program."

Nigel Cooper, $717,334, Kentucky EPSCoR Program and National Science Foundation, "Enhancement of the Targeted Research Area of Developmental Neurobiology."

Teresa Jarrett and Ralph Fitzpatrick, $276,224, U.S. Department of Education, "Project Upward Bound."

Barbara McLaughlin, $236,481, National Institutes of Health, "Cell Biology of Inherited Retinal Degeneration."

Phyllis Metcalf-Turner, $100,923, Kentucky Department of Education, "Minority Education Recruitment Scholarships."

Charles Najdek, $110,500, University of Cincinnati and National Institutes of Health, "Hazardous Waste Worker Training."

Ruth Paton and Iris Phillips, $163,254, Health Resources and Services Administration, "Kentucky Interdisciplinary Community Screenings."

Peipei Ping, $96,283, National Institutes of Health, "Regulation of GRK and AC Expression in Heart Failure."

C. Venkateswara Rao and Z. Lei, $250,425, National Institutes of Health, "Direct Gonotropin Regulation of Human Fallopian Tubes."

Shi-Yu Wu, $202,933, Kentucky EPSCoR Program, "A Multi-level Approach to Study Systems with Complex Structures."