Robin DiMatteo, Psychology (Quicktime Video)
"I study physician-patient communication as well as patient adherence to recommended treatments for the prevention and management of chronic illness."
DiMatteo studies why people follow doctor's orders, how people maintain health and how people adjust to illness or disability. She also studies the psychological impact of chronic pain on patients, as well as adjustment to childbirth. She has found that the bedside manner of an individual doctor has a measurable impact on whether patients get well. Among her numerous books and articles is one called: "Americans' Views of Health Professionals and the Health Care System."
Robert Haddon, Chemistry, Chemical and Environmental Engineering (Quicktime Video)
"I am investigating the ability of carbon nanotubes to help produce a bone mimic."
Haddon is interested in the use of nanomaterials as replacements for certain functionalities in biology and medicine, because the outstanding properties of carbon nanotubes suggest that they may be able to outperform normal biomaterials. Thus Haddon's lab is investigating the ability of carbon nanotubes to function as a scaffold for mineralization to produce hybrid organic-inorganic composites that might produce a bone mimic. His research group is examining the incorportation of carbon nanotubes into cells where their electronic conductivity might replicate the action potential in neurons.
Michael Pirrung, Chemistry (Quicktime Video)
"New molecules my lab has found could replace insulin as a treatment for diabetes, and could be taken orally instead of being injected."
The value of Pirrung's work, representing the first preparation of a molecular microarray, has now become widely appreciated. His technique permits the rapid synthesis of hundreds of thousands of short oligonucleotides in small, independent locations on a surface. It combines elements of biotechnology and semiconductor technology to prepare DNA arrays, which are a major contributor to the analysis of the Human Genome. They also ushered in a new era wherein the power to simultaneously perform multiplex, miniaturized analyses is at the cutting edge. Pirrung also has drawn upon his background in synthetic organic photochemistry to develop the technique of light-directed spatially addressable parallel chemical synthesis - a seminal contribution to combinatorial chemistry.
Frances Sladek, Cell Biology (Quicktime Video)
"I work on a protein that controls the expression of genes in the liver and pancreas, and is directly linked to diabetes."
Sladek's lab researches the mechanism of action of a transcription factor that is enriched in the liver, kidney, intestines and pancreas. This transcription factor, HNF4, turns on the expression of genes in those tissues and has been directly linked to human diseases such as diabetes and hemophilia. HNF4 is also indirectly linked to disease such as atherosclerosis via the genes that it regulates. The goal of her research is to better understand how HNF4 controls gene expression so that scientists have a better understanding of the diseases to which it is linked. Additionally, since HNF4 is a member of the nuclear receptor superfamily of ligand-dependent transcription factors, it is considered a potential drug target that may one day help in the treatment of diabetes and atherosclerosis.
Ameae M. Walker, Biomedical Sciences (Quicktime Video)
"I study the role of the hormone prolactin in the development and promotion of prostate and breast cancer."
The Walker lab studies the role of the hormone, prolactin, in the development and promotion of prostate and breast cancer. In the process, Walker's lab has developed a potential therapeutic which blocks the effects of regular prolactin and causes cancer cells to stop growing and to become more normal, or to die, depending on dose and duration of treatment. At the same time, this therapeutic inhibits the formation of blood vessels. This adds to its anti-cancer effects and also suggests that it could be used for other conditions driven by the production of too many blood vessels, such as diabetic retinopathy. This therapeutic is also anti-inflammatory, an effect which is beneficial in the treatment of cancer, as well as in a wide variety of inflammatory diseases.
Jian-Kang Zhu, Integrative Genome Biology (Quicktime Video)
"I work on small interfering RNAs - a new class of genetic regulators - that silence the expression of numerous genes, many of which are related to diseases."
Zhu is interested in the mechanisms of biogenesis and function of microRNAs and small interfering RNAs. These small RNAs regulate the expression of many disease-related genes. He also works on the mechanism of active DNA demethylation, which is relevant to cancer biology since most cancers are characterized by whole genome DNA demethylation accompanied by hypermethylation at specific loci.