Two 5X社区 researchers from the College of Arts and Sciences have been awarded more than $1 million in federal grants for their research projects.
The National Institutes of Health鈥檚 National Institute on Aging awarded Gemma Casadesus-Smith, Ph.D., from Kent State鈥檚 Department of Biological Sciences, a three-year $444,000 grant to research the mechanisms associated with the benefits of Pramlintide 鈥 a synthetic hormone 鈥 in models of Alzheimer鈥檚 disease.
Scott Sheridan, Ph.D., from Kent State鈥檚 Department of Geography, received a three-year $565,000 NASA grant to study climate change through models of water clarity in the Great Lakes.
鈥淭hese two grants will contribute significantly to our goal of growing impactful research at Kent State,鈥 says Paul DiCorleto, Ph.D., vice president for research and sponsored programs. 鈥淭hey demonstrate the recognition by their peers that the projects of these two faculty are of the highest quality and importance.鈥
About Gemma Casadesus-Smith鈥檚 Grant
Pramlintide is a synthesized version of a hormone called amylin. The hormone, which helps the body to process glucose, is found naturally in humans and other animals.
鈥淚n the last 10 years, many researchers have started viewing Alzheimer鈥檚 as type-3 diabetes, because the brain becomes bad at using glucose,鈥 Casadesus-Smith says.
Amylin has been found to not only improve insulin sensitivity to help metabolize glucose, but also to have a direct impact upon cognition.
In diabetic patients, amylin tends to bind to itself and form plaques in the pancreas. Why this happens isn鈥檛 yet clear, but when amylin plaques form, the body no longer receives the benefits of the hormone.
Pramlintide is a form of amylin that does not bind itself and is used in conjunction with other diabetes treatments to improve insulin function in diabetic patients.
Introducing amylin either systemically or directly into the hippocampus has also shown direct benefits in Alzheimer鈥檚 models. The question is why, Casadesus-Smith says.
鈥淲e know this drug works, but what we don鈥檛 know is how it works, and that鈥檚 what this grant will allow us to study,鈥 she says.
Knowing why a drug works is vital to determining dosage, setting standards for clinical trials to help determine why a trial succeeded or failed, and allowing for development of new drug variations that can more directly target specific problems.
About Scott Sheridan鈥檚 Grant
This is Sheridan鈥檚 second NASA grant in this series of research, following up on a 2013 grant that focused on water clarity in the Gulf Coast.
The research uses NASA鈥檚 satellite imaging systems to establish and study indicators of climate change.
Sheridan鈥檚 work in this area began six years ago when a scientist from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration found his work on synoptic climatology through a Google search.
鈥淲hat we鈥檙e studying are trends and variability in water cloudiness as it related to weather conditions and climate change and variability,鈥 Sheridan says.
This grant will study similar trends in the Great Lakes. Sheridan says the conditions there mean the markers are different.
The Gulf Coast cloudiness means changes in chlorophyll and other biological elements that are generally seen as bad for marine life, like coral and other larger aquatic life. In the Great Lakes, it is more complex, he says. While too much algae are a problem, like those that contaminated Toledo鈥檚 water supply in 2014, lake water that鈥檚 too clear may indicate zebra mussels have taken over the ecosystem.
The grant will be administered through Kent State, but will also pay for the expertise of a professor and post-doctoral student at the University of South Florida, who specialize in deciphering the water clarity readings from satellite images.
For more on Sheridan鈥檚 research, visit www.kent.edu/geography/profile/scott-sheridan.
For more on Casadesus-Smith鈥檚 research, visit www.kent.edu/research/gemma-casadesus-smith.
For more information about Kent State鈥檚 Division of Research and Sponsored Programs, visit www.kent.edu/research.