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The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the Republic of India, have entered into a bilateral agreement to develop low-cost health-care technologies aimed at the medically underserved. The agreement is based on a shared commitment to improve the health and well-being of the people of both countries by encouraging collaborations and cooperation on the development of diagnostic and therapeutic medical technologies that are inexpensive and operate at the initial point of physician contact, or point of care.
"We are very pleased to officially establish this groundbreaking effort between NIH/NIBIB and the Department of Biotechnology," said NIBIB director Roderic I. Pettigrew, Ph.D., M.D. "This agreement will create a working partnership designed to help address global health disparities by encouraging the development of improved methods and technologies to diagnose and treat illness and injury across geographic and economic borders."
Areas of cooperation outlined in the agreement include low-cost innovations in X-ray technology; nanotechnology-based biosensors; point-of-care diagnostic technologies; telehealth and telecommunication technologies; and neonatal health technologies. The disease areas and conditions likely to be affected by the successful development of the technologies are infectious diseases, cardiovascular disease, liver disease, trauma and injury, and conditions associated with infant mortality.
"Developing low-cost health technologies that are unique in design to be affordable and useable in disease prevention and management is a high priority in India," said Maharaj Bhan, M.D., DBT director. "The partnership with NIH, and through them, with U.S. institutions, is critical for us to make progress. We are excited about this agreement with NIH to bring multiple disciplines and teams together to find innovative solutions."
As part of the agreement, NIBIB and the DBT will encourage workshops and meetings to share experiences and scientific information; link appropriate centers of excellence and institutes; engage in bilateral cooperation on the assessment and application of new diagnostic technologies; and generate collaboration among scientists and engineers in the conduct of research, research training, and technology development. The agencies will facilitate and share each other's efforts in research and development through regular interactions between scientists, and will work towards mutual, annual goals.
The signing of the Agreement on Science and Technology took place during a recent visit to the Ministry of Science and Technology in New Delhi, India.
October 4: NIBIB Invests in Quantum Research
The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), today announced the award of more than $12 million in grants to support research and development of potentially high-impact, innovative technologies to advance health care.
The new grants will fund four investigators in developing groundbreaking technologies: disposable microchips for the diagnosis of metastatic lung cancer, a bio-artificial kidney to eliminate dialysis procedures, insulin-producing cells to treat diabetes, and nanoparticles that selectively leave the blood and bind to cancer cells to assist in removal of brain tumors.
"This innovative program from the NIBIB promises to harness the power of technological discovery and team science to translate new knowledge into practical healthcare benefits for our nation," said Elias A. Zerhouni, M.D., NIH director.
The overall goal of the NIBIB Quantum Grants program is to make a profound (quantum level) advance in health care by funding research on targeted projects that will develop new technologies and modalities for the diagnosis, treatment, or prevention of disease.
"We are excited to be awarding these Quantum Grants to four excellent researchers and their interdisciplinary teams," said NIBIB director Roderic I. Pettigrew, Ph.D., M.D. "We look forward to watching the extraordinary results that will be achieved as these studies progress. All four of these projects have the potential to significantly improve the current practice of medicine."
Anthony Atala, M.D., Wake Forest Uuniversity Health Sciences ($3.2 miliion - 3 years)
Insulin Producing Cells from Amniotic Stem Cells for Diabetes Therapy
Diabetes impacts the individuals afflicted and society as a whole due to the significant complications associated with using existing insulin treatment strategies. The aim of this project is to develop a new source of insulin secreting cells as a replacement strategy for treating diabetes. Transplantation of pancreatic islets to restore insulin production is promising; however, the donor pancreata are in short supply and do not meet medical needs. The development of these tissue engineered islets will provide a new source of insulin-producing cells and help realize the full potential of cell therapy for diabetes.
Nanoparticle Enabled Intraoperative Imaging and Therapy
Brain cancer is one of the most lethal forms of cancer, and is diagnosed in over 43,000 new patients each year. The goal of this project is to improve surgical resection and treatment options for brain cancer patients. Dr. Kopelman and his team will develop nanoparticles that selectively leave the blood and bind to cancer cells. These nanoparticles will aid in the visualization of tumors to allow for maximal surgical resection of tumor mass and also facilitate nonsurgical destruction of the residual cancer cells that are remote or extend from the tumor mass. This may achieve significant improvement in treatment of brain tumors.
Shuvo Roy, Ph.D., Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine-CWRU ($3.2 million - 3 years)
Miniaturized Implantable Renal Assist Device for Total Renal Replacement Therapy
End stage renal disease is a significant global health problem. Donor kidneys for transplantation are in short supply, with dialysis and filtration as the only alternative treatment. This investigator and his team will develop a, miniaturized, implantable, and self-regulating bio-artificial kidney that takes the dialysis machinery and integrates it into a miniaturized implantable device. The successful development of this bio-artificial kidney would provide an alternative to the majority of the dialysis procedures performed annually in the U.S.
Mehmet Toner, Ph.D., Massachusetts General Hospital ($3.4 million - 3 years)
Point-of-Care Microfluidics in Lung Cancer
The goal of this project is to develop a point-of-care microchip device that can determine the type, severity, and aggressiveness of a wide range of cancers by detecting tumor cells that are circulating in the blood stream. Dr. Toner and his team will develop a new disposable microchip technology capable of separating specific circulating tumor cells from whole human blood at concentrations as low as one in a billion. Detecting the presence of these tumor cells at such low concentrations enables earlier intervention in the treatment of metastatic lung cancer, which remains the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. This point of care test can potentially transform patient care through early molecular diagnosis of lung cancer and identification of new biomarkers with which to track disease progression.
For more information about the NIBIB Quantum Grants program, visit the web site at: http://www.nibib.nih.gov/Research/QuantumGrants.
October 4: Division of Bioengineering and Physical Science Transferred to the NIBIB
The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) today announced the integration of the Division of Bioengineering and Physical Science (DBEPS), formerly part of the NIH Office of Research Services, into the NIBIB Intramural Research Program. The expertise of the DBEPS staff supports the mission of the NIBIB to integrate bioengineering with the life and physical sciences, and spans cutting-edge technologies operating at scales ranging from near-atomic resolution to intact organisms.
"We are excited about the transfer of this exceptional cadre of researchers to the NIBIB Intramural Research Program," said NIBIB Director Roderic I. Pettigrew, Ph.D., M.D. "The unique expertise and cutting-edge technologies developed by this group are an exceptional fit with the mission of the institute, which is to improve health by leading the development and accelerating the application of biomedical technologies."
The Laboratory of Bioengineering and Physical Science specializes in the development and application of new technologies, based on engineering, mathematics, and the physical sciences, for the solution of problems in biology and medicine. The 26 staff members formerly associated with DBEPS have been transferred to NIBIB, along with equipment and over 14,000 square feet of laboratory space. The current laboratory structure will be maintained, and staff will perform their same functions.
Consultations and collaborative research with other NIH intramural scientists will continue to be the main focus of this group's work. Research areas currently include new approaches to determine three-dimensional cellular structure, measuring interactions between macromolecules, modeling drug delivery, and performing nanoscale diagnostics.
"I look forward to increasing the impact of the DBEPS program through the innovative and stimulating environment of NIBIB, and to enhancing our collaborative contributions to the research programs of all the other NIH institutes and centers," said NIBIB Scientific Director Richard D. Leapman, Ph.D. "Incorporation of DBEPS into NIBIB will also provide an ideal setting for the new trans-NIH initiative in "Imaging Molecules to Cells", which we will be helping to lead."
In addition to the added staff and laboratory space, the transfer brings to the NIBIB Intramural Research Program some unique training opportunities for undergraduate biomedical engineering students and postdoctoral scientists and engineers through the Biomedical Engineering Summer Internship Program (http://www.nibib.nih.gov/Training/UndergradGrad/besip/home), and the National Research Council NIH/NIST Research Associateship Program (http://www.training.nih.gov/postdoctoral/nist.asp).
This new intramural component will join the existing NIBIB Intramural Research Program, which includes the PET Radiochemistry Research Laboratory responsible for conducting research and training in the development and application of novel radiochemical probes for biomedical imaging, and the joint Laboratory for the Assessment of Medical Imaging Systems at the FDA.
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