HUMAN HEALTH RESEARCH AT VIRGINIA TECH

Biomedical Research

Research Groups in this section:
Cells, Molecules, and Biotechnology:
Fralin Biotechnology Center   |  Virginia Center for Genomics  |  Cell Cycle Regulation Group  |  Center for Comparative Oncology  |  
Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmeceutical Production:
Natural Products Chemistry Group  |  Horseshoe Crab Research Center   |  Laboratory for Neurotoxicity Studies   |  Non-timber Forest Products
Infectious Disease and Immunology:
Center for Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases   |  Mosquito-borne Diseases and Human Health

Cells, Molecules, and Biotechnology

Fralin Biotechnology Center — The center is the campus focal point for biotechnology related research, education, and outreach. The center encourages interdisciplinary research among faculty from many departments campuswide. Research efforts at Fralin include genetic engineering of plants for pharmaceutical and vaccine production, disease resistance, enhancement of nutrient bio-availability, nitrogen fixation, and the understanding and control of intracellular signaling. Research by the Fralin faculty has resulted in such products as medical diagnostic kits now used in hospitals worldwide. Four companies have resulted from Fralin faculty members' research, and patents return more than $1 million in royalties to the university each year. Funding comes from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Defense, USDA, Office of Naval Research, the Jeffress Foundation, and others. (See examples.) Contact: Dennis Dean, (540) 231-6934.

Virginia Tech Center for Genomics (VIGEN) — VIGEN represents an interdisciplinary effort to provide a focus for research and teaching in functional genomics, proteomics, statistical genetics, bioinformatics, and metabolic engineering. A major research goal is to achieve air-dry stabilization and preservation of human cells (including adult mesenchymal and hematopoietic stem cells) for use in far forward combat casualty/trauma care and in biosensors. The program is supported through a three-year Department of Defense infrastructure grant in the Multi University Research Initiative (MURI), with an option for two more years, and a grant from the Metabolic Engineering Program of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). VIGEN collaborations include confidentiality agreements with the Blood Research Group of the Walter Reed Army Institute for Research, the American Type Culture Collection, colleagues at Johns Hopkins University, and the biosensor group of MIT-Lincoln Labs. Contracts with other industrial partners, including new start-up company AnhydroCyte Corporation, are supporting further developments of dry-down technologies for the biomedical sector. Contact: Malcolm Potts, (540) 231-5745, or Richard Helm, (540) 231-4088.

Cell Cycle Regulation Group — The cell division cycle is the sequence of events whereby a living cell replicates its components and divides them between two daughter cells, so that each daughter has the information and machinery necessary to repeat the process. A thorough understanding of the molecular mechanisms regulating cell reproduction would enable rational intervention in the proliferation of mammalian cells and pathogens, with significant consequences for human medicine and military preparedness. These issues are studied at Virginia Tech by a combination of experimental, theoretical, and computational methods. Jill Sible's group is studying the genes and proteins involved in regulating cell division using the early frog embryo as a model system. John Tyson's group is developing mathematical models of the control systems in yeast cells and frog eggs. A Virginia Tech computer science group, led by Cliff Shaffer, Layne Watson, and Naren Ramakrishnan, is working with Tyson and Sible to create new software tools for studying complex molecular regulatory systems. The collaboration also includes scientists at Rockefeller University, the University of Kentucky Medical School, and the Technical University of Budapest. DARPA's BioSPICE (Simulation Program for Intra-Cellular Evaluation) initiative, NIH, NSF, and the McDonnell Foundation have provided funding to support this research over the next three years. Contact: John Tyson, University Distinguished Professor, (540) 231-4662.

Center for Comparative Oncology (CeCO) – An academic center based in the College of Veterinary Medicine, CeCO facilitates research by scientists from across the campus. The center conducts research on cancer in many species of animals and to determine how similarities and differences in the growth of tumors in different species can be exploited for novel therapies. The center is developing a biorepository of tumors and a unique collection of primate tissues and tumors for genomic analysis. Examples of research include immunophenotyping and outcomes analysis for canine malignant lymphoma, control of vascular growth factors in models of tumor growth and hypoxia, study of the effects of polyunsaturated fatty acids on expression and control of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) in mammary gland tumors, and association of phenotypic and genotypic factors in an equine model of malignant melanoma. Funding has been provided by the American Cancer Society, Carilion Biomedical Institute, Biophile Inc., and the Gunst Foundation. Contact: John Robertson, (540) 231-4643.

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Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Production

Bioorganic and Natural Products Chemistry Group — The group's research is centered on the chemistry of biologically active natural products related to cancer, with major areas being the chemistry and mechanism of action of the anti-cancer agent paclitaxel (Taxol™), isolation and structure elucidation of new natural products with anticancer activity, and the use of natural products chemistry to promote biodiversity conservation, economic development, and drug discovery in Suriname and Madagascar. The research has produced 13 patents for derivatives and enhancements of paclitaxel. Research sponsors include the National Cancer Institute, NIH, and NSF. Contact: David Kingston, University Distinguished Professor, (540) 231-6570.

Horseshoe Crab Research Center – Biomedical companies catch and bleed horseshoe crabs to produce the chemical Limulus Amebocyte Lysate (LAL) used to detect the presence of bacteria in injectable drugs and implantable devices. The center provides information necessary to improve the management of this medically, economically, and ecologically essential species. Researchers are also looking at culturing and cloning the cells that produce LAL to eliminate the need to catch horseshoe crabs for bleeding. The center combines faculty members, students, facilities, and expertise from Virginia Tech's Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Conservation Management Institute, and the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute. Research sponsors include BioWhittaker Inc., Virginia Sea Grant, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, and the states of New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. Contact Eric Hallerman, (540) 231-3257.

Laboratory for Neurotoxicity Studies — The lab studies specific problems of neurotoxicity and neuropathology associated with exposure to drugs and chemicals. Researchers perform toxicological, physiological, biochemical, pathological, behavioral, and neurological investigations, which can be used for pathogenetic studies, product development, and safety assessment. Interdisciplinary basic and applied research provides comprehensive coverage of neurotoxic effects of such agents as pesticides, solvents, heavy metals, and mycotoxins. The laboratory has particular expertise with both in vivo and in vitro aspects of organophosphorus-induced delayed neuropathy. Recent research funding is from the U.S. Army, NIH, USDA, and Procter & Gamble. Contact: Bernard Jortner and Marion Ehrich, (540) 231-4817.

Non-timber Forest Products (NTFPs) — Traditional forest medicinal products have a significant role in treating disease. In some areas, demand outstrips supply. The NTFP program, within the Department of Wood Science and Forest Products, focuses on the sustainable management and use of forest-based food and medicinal products. The research explores the potential for sustainable linkages between medicinal forest product markets and rural households that incorporate NTFP collection in their livelihood strategies. Other research projects include studies in Appalachia to document indigenous knowledge about NTFP use and markets. Research sponsors include Chemonics International Inc., Mountain Institute, the USDA Forest Service, and Total Action Against Poverty of Roanoke, Va. Contact: A.L. Hammett, (540) 231-2716.

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Infectious Disease and Immunology

Center for Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases (CMMID) — Special emphasis is placed on the use of recombinant DNA, cell fusion, gene cloning and sequencing, monoclonal antibody production, and mammalian cell culture for immunological studies. Areas of specialization are bacteriology, biochemistry, immunology, parasitology, toxicology, and virology. Funded areas of research include the development of recombinant vaccines for brucellosis, anthrax, tuberculosis, swine pleuropneumonia, and other infectious diseases of humans and animals that serve as models for human diseases. CMMID faculty members are also working on immunological studies of toxoplasma central nervous system disease and autoimmune diseases, development of improved diagnostic tests and vaccines for tularemia, virulence mechanisms and complete sequencing of the bacterial genome of Haemophilus somnus (a model for human Haemophilus infections, one of the causes of bacterial meningitis and pneumonia), sequencing of the genome of Brucella suis, study of the pathogenesis of hepatitis E and other viruses, Neurospora infections, and the role of oxygen radicals in disease. The USDA and NIH provide funding. Contact: Ansar Ahmed, (540) 231-5591.

Vector-Borne Disease Research Group — Zhijian Tu in biochemistry leads a multi-department research effort on mosquito-borne diseases. By studying disease agent development within and pathogen transmission by mosquito vectors, as well as distribution, ecology, and molecular evolution of vectors, the group expects to develop novel strategies to interrupt disease transmission. Targeted diseases include malaria, dengue, and La Crosse and West Nile encephalitis. Tu's lab contributed to mapping the genome of the malaria mosquito in early 2002 and other mosquito species since. Malaria cases range from 300 to 500 million per year. Dengue cases number 50 million per year worldwide. Mosquito-borne encephalitis is a significant U.S. health threat, with more than 3,000 cases per year. Sally Paulson of entomology found mosquitoes with the virus in southwest Virginia counties. The group has collaborators worldwide. Research at Virginia Tech is supported by the NIH and the U.S. Army. Contacts: Sally Paulson, (540) 231-8035, and Zhijian Tu, (540) 231-8062.

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About cancer research at Virginia Tech – Although more than $4 billion per year is spent on cancer research, little is known about the mechanisms underlying the development of cancer or effective cures. Fundamentally, cancer is a disease of the cell and therefore understanding the basic mechanisms that control cell reproduction is crucial to prevention and treatment of cancer. However, cancer research also involves processes both larger and smaller than the cell. Understanding how tumors grow and spread requires knowledge of how cells interact, while identification and characterization of anti-cancer drugs requires knowledge of fundamental chemistry and the latest approaches to drug design and synthesis. Given the complexity of cancer, successful advances in combating this disease require synergy among scientists investigating cancer at all levels. At Virginia Tech, the cancer biology initiative includes such departments as chemistry, biology, biochemistry, and chemical engineering, as well as programs in several centers and colleges. The new Center for Comparative Oncology and the long-standing Cell Cycle Regulation Group typify the creative, interdisciplinary research programs that can develop when talented researchers work together to address a complex problem.

Examples of research at the Fralin Biotechnology Center:

• A collaborative NIH-funded study by the John Jelesko and John McDowell laboratories seeks a comprehensive understanding of how meiotic recombination causes rapid evolution of gene clusters involved in pathogen resistance. Employing synthetic gene clusters in the model organism Arabidopsis and a novel recombinant event detection system, these researchers hope to determine whether/how biotic and abiotic stresses affect recombination of disease resistant genes in a multi-cellular organism. Contact: John Jelesko, (540) 231-3728 or John McDowell, (540) 231-2388.

• The Glenda Gillaspy laboratory has previous experience in human disease signal transduction pathways (oncogenes/human growth control). In USDA-funded work, the lab is producing and using transgenic Arabidopsis to delineate and manipulate signal transduction pathways involved with responses to the environment. The genes studied are postulated to play various roles in signaling, disease, and growth maintenance of all organisms. In new work funded by the Commonwealth Health Research Board, lab researchers are using bioinformatics in a gene discovery project targeted to genes that can be used to treat Type II diabetes. Contact: Glenda Gillaspy, (540) 231-1850.

Animal vaccine being adapted for humans — Vaccine RB51, a cattle vaccine against brucellosis developed in the early 1990s by Gerhardt Schurig, Virginia Tech professor of biomedical sciences and pathobiology, was adopted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1996. As a result, brucellosis has been eradicated from the U.S. cattle population. Subsequently, Stephen M. Boyle, Schurig, Nanmalwar Sriranganathan, and their post docs and students in veterinary medicine improved RB51 so it protects against two additional diseases of worldwide concern, tuberculosis and paratuberculosis.

Now, the CMMID scientists are using RB51 as a platform for a multivalent vaccine that will protect humans from both brucellosis and anthrax. They have a cooperative research agreement with scientists and physicians at Walter Reed Army Institute of Medical Research to test the strains in monkeys as a prelude to testing in humans. The CMMID group is also developing a RB51 recombinant vaccine to Rift Valley Fever virus, which has been shown to provide protection against a challenge in a mouse model. The group is developing multivalent vaccines based on the RB51 platform against many potential bioterrorism agents. Contact: Nanmalwar Sriranganathan, (540) 231-7171.