Event program

UNLV Undergraduates from all departments, programs and colleges participated in a campus-wide symposium on April 16, 2011. Undergraduate posters from all disciplines and also oral presentations of research activities, readings and other creative endeavors were exhibited throughout the festival

Event program

UNLV Undergraduates from all departments, programs and colleges participated in a campus-wide symposium on April 16, 2011. Undergraduate posters from all disciplines and also oral presentations of research activities, readings and other creative endeavors were exhibited throughout the festival

The Price of Progress: Funding and Financing Alzheimer\u27s Disease Drug Development

Introduction Advancing research and treatment for Alzheimer\u27s disease (AD) and the search for effective treatments depend on a complex financial ecosystem involving federal, state, industry, advocacy, venture capital, and philanthropy funding approaches. Methods We conducted an expert review of the literature pertaining to funding and financing of translational research and drug development for AD. Results The federal government is the largest public funder of research in AD. The National Institute on Aging, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of General Medical Sciences, and National Center for Advancing Translational Science all fund aspects of research in AD drug development. Non-National Institutes of Health federal funding comes from the National Science Foundation, Veterans Administration, Food and Drug Administration, and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Academic Medical Centers host much of the federally funded basic science research and are increasingly involved in drug development. Funding of the “Valley of Death” involves philanthropy and federal funding through small business programs and private equity from seed capital, angel investors, and venture capital companies. Advocacy groups fund both basic science and clinical trials. The Alzheimer Association is the advocacy organization with the largest research support portfolio relevant to AD drug development. Pharmaceutical companies are the largest supporters of biomedical research worldwide; companies are most interested in late stage de-risked drugs. Drugs progressing into phase II and III are candidates for pharmaceutical industry support through licensing, mergers and acquisitions, and co-development collaborations. Discussion Together, the funding and financing entities involved in supporting AD drug development comprise a complex, interactive, dynamic financial ecosystem. Funding source interaction is largely unstructured and available funding is insufficient to meet all demands for new therapies. Novel approaches to funding such as mega-funds have been proposed and more integration of component parts would assist in accelerating drug development

A Review of the “Open” and “Closed” Circulatory Systems: New Terminology for Complex Invertebrate Circulatory Systems in Light of Current Findings

Invertebrate cardiovascular systems have historically been viewed as sluggish, poorly regulated, and “open”, where blood bathes the tissues directly as it moves through a system of ill-defined sinuses and/or lacunae without an endothelial boundary. When examining cardiovascular/circulatory morphology and physiology in a broader evolutionary context, one can question the very nature of the definition of a “closed” versus “open” circulatory system. Viewed in this context a number of invertebrates have evolved incomplete or even completely cell-lined vessels and or lacunae with a highly branched vasculature that allows for the production of significant driving pressures and flows to meet relatively high metabolic demands driven by active life styles. In light of our current understanding of invertebrate cardiovascular systems and their paralleled complexity to vertebrate systems, a number of long established paradigms must be questioned and new definitions presented to better align our understanding of the nature of “open” versus “closed” cardiovascular systems

Effect of temperature and oxygen levels on lactate production in Palaemonetes pugio

Oxygen delivery rates must keep pace with the increased metabolic rate observed in poikilothermic animals exposed to increased temperature if aerobic metabolism is to be maintained. Physical failure of the oxygen delivery system to meet these demands may be a mechanism of cardiac failure in crustaceans at temperature extremes. As part of the determination of the effect of temperature on the cardio-respiratory system, we are measuring whole animal lactate levels in grass shrimp acclimated to 20°C over temperature ranges in normoxic and hyperoxic conditions. Lactate levels are measured as an indicator of a switch from aerobic to anaerobic metabolism. Animals placed in a hyperoxic environment had a higher CT max than animals in a normoxic environment, suggesting a physical limitation in oxygen delivery. Animals were collected and placed in liquid nitrogen across the temperature range in both normoxic and hyperoxic conditions. Lactate levels were determined with whole animals using an enzymatic method from a commercial lactate analysis kit

Research Symposium 2021- Welcome from Dr. Carl Reiber

Georgia Southern University Academic Affairs Provost and Vice President, Dr. Carl Reiber, offers a welcome to Research Symposium 2021

Dr. Carl Reiber Welcomes You to the 2022 Research Symposium

Georgia Southern University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Carl Reiber addresses attendees of the 2022 Research Symposium

Dr. Carl Reiber Welcomes You to the 2022 Research Symposium

Georgia Southern University Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Carl Reiber addresses attendees of the 2022 Research Symposium

The hemodynamics of the crustacean open circulatory system: Hemolymph flow in the crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) and the lobster (Homarus americanus)

The morphology and physiology of crustacean cardiovascular systems has long been regarded as poorly organized and loosely controlled, systems serving only as a conduit to carry hemolymph. Current investigations of cardiovascular systems of decapod Crustacea have revealed an organization that is more complex than previously thought. The purpose of this research is to extend the study of crustacean cardiovascular physiology by investigating the hemodynamics of the freshwater crayfish, Procambarus clarkii, and the lobster, Homarus americanus. Crayfish and lobster were exposed to a P\sb{\rm O\sb2} of 150 mmHg (control) followed by P\sb{\rm O\sb2}s of 25, 40, 75 and 115 mmHg O\sb2. Arterial hemolymph velocities were measured (Pulsed Doppler system) in the major arteries of crayfish and lobster. Hemolymph pressures were measured throughout the circulatory system of the crayfish. The cardiovascular response of hypoxic crayfish to injection of hyperoxic water into the branchial chamber was monitored to determine the location of O\sb2 receptors. Heart frequency in both species decreased as water P\sb{\rm O\sb2} was lowered. Cardiac output was maintained in the crayfish due to an increase in stroke volume. Hemolymph flow increased to the anterior aorta only. Hemolymph pressures and ventilatory frequency increased down to a P\sb{\rm O\sb2} of 50 mmHg O\sb2; below this all parameters declined. Cardiac output and stroke volume in the lobster were maintained down to a P\sb{\rm O\sb2} of 75 mmHg O\sb2; at lower P\sb{\rm O\sb2}s cardiac output declined as a result of the hypoxia induced bradycardia. Hemolymph flow increased in the lateral arteries and ventral thoracic artery. Hypoxic crayfish showed a rapid increase in cardiovascular parameters (2.5 second) with a long lag in the respiratory response (75 seconds) to injection of hyperoxic water into their branchial chamber. Injection of hyperoxic water into animals that had defined gill sets removed indicates the presence of O\sb2-sensitive chemoreceptors in the posterior region of the branchial chamber. The redistribution of cardiac output in crayfish and lobster results in a maintenance of hemolymph flow to the anterior regions of the animals. The maintenance of cardiac output with hypoxia may not be solely related to maintaining M\sb{\rm O\sb2}, but may play a role in maintaining oxygen delivery to nervous tissue. The response to a declining water P\sb{\rm O\sb2} is mediated by O\sb2 receptors associated with the posterior gills