2015 May Beacon

May 2015/Rajab 1436 Volume 5, Issue No. 9 ‫جامعة الملك عبداهلل للعلوم والتقنية‬

‫ المملكة العربية السعودية‬،‫ثول‬

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

www.kaust.edu.sa

‫تأمين مستقبل الطاقة‬ ‫في المملكة‬ Securing the Kingdom’s energy future Page 4

Red Sea could hold key to new HIV treatment Page 8 The challenges of computing in three dimensions Page 10 KAUST celebrates Earth Day Page 12

Adding beauty to the science Page 6

In brief The 2016 Artists of KAUST exhibit opened with a reception on April 22 in the University Library. The exhibition will run through May 5 showcasing paintings, photography, textiles, jewelry, sculpture and ceramics created by the KAUST community.

On April 22, Merrick Furst, distinguished professor of computing at the Georgia Institute of Technology, gave a lecture in the Engineering Science Hall entitled “Neither Visionaries nor Bean Counters: Solving the Dilemma of Company Creation.”

The Sixth Annual Talent Show was held on April 30. The Office of the Arts, Tamimi Markets, KAUST Matjar and Coastline sponsored the event. There were 19 finalists from 16 different countries performing in 11 acts. The show was judged by a community panel and audience members voted for a “People’s Choice” favorite.

The Beacon Volume 5, Issue 9 PUBLISHED BY THE COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT King Abdullah University of Science and Technology Thuwal, Saudi Arabia

The Beacon Staff Managing Editors: Michelle D’Antoni, Salah Sindi Editor: Nicholas Demille Designer: Mahjubeh R. Mashhadi Arabic Editor: Saad Al-Husainan Writers: Caitlin Clark, David Murphy, Meres Weche Photographer: Ginger Lisanti Translator: Adel Alrefaie

The Beacon is published monthly. © King Abdullah University of Science and Technology

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THE BEACON | May 2015

The 2015 Employee Awards ceremony was held on May 5 in honor of the 250 staff, faculty, researchers and KAUST School teachers who reached the five-year milestone of service to KAUST. A group of dedicated individuals who were nominated by their peers were also recognized for their outstanding contribution, service excellence and community spirit.

On May 23, the KAUST community will take part in the global observance of the “Fascination of Plants Day,” designed to generate awareness about the importance of plants and plant science. Dr. Heribert Hirt and the Center for Desert Agriculture are leading the way with tours of the KAUST greenhouse and a whole lot more. Stay tuned to thelens.kaust.edu.sa for complete details.

The sixth annual KAUST School (TKS) graduation will be held on May 27 in the Auditorium (bldg. 20). A record 38 TKS seniors will cross the stage before turning tassels and throwing hats in this year’s celebration.

The Recent Trends in Predicting and Monitoring the Integrity of Composites conference (COMINT) will be held on June 1 and 2, 2015. KAUST professors Gilles Lubineau and Raul Tempone, in collaboration with professor John Botsis of EPFL and Marco Alfano of the University of Calabria, organized the event. Visit cohmas. kaust.edu.sa for more information.

The holy month of Ramadan is set to begin on the evening of Wednesday, June 17.

Stay tuned to thelens.kaust.edu.sa for complete details of Ramadan activities, observances and more.

Cover image: Researchers in the KAUST Clean Combustion Research Center are working with the General Electric Co. to understand the mechanism by which vanadium corrodes power-producing turbines.

Cover bottom left: An illustration of the structural molecular components of septate junctions in a coral species for a paper published by Manuel Aranda and Christian Voolstra, Assistant Professors, Marine Science and collaborators from Monaco. A collaborative effort of Gromicho and Hwang, this illustration combines a three-dimensional model developed by Hwang with images of the coral treated, painted and composed by Gromicho.

1 KAUST professor Nikos Hadjichristidis with ACS President Diane Grob Schmidt (left) and ExxonMobil Chemical Company sponsor representative Jay Dias receives the ACS award in Polymer Chemistry at the 249th American Chemical Society National Meeting & Exposition.

2 Abdul Latif Abdul Latif accepts the award in London on behalf of the KAUST Admissions Department.

3 At the 10th IEEE International Conference on Nano/Micro Engineered and Molecular Systems, Doctoral student David Conchouso gave one oral presentation, doctoral student Armando Arevalo delivered two oral presentations, and doctoral student Ying Yi gave one oral presentation. Left to right: David Conchouso, Armando Arevalo, IEEE-NEMS General Chair Prof. Ning Xi, Ying Yi, KAUST research scientist Ulrich Buttner, and KAUST Ph.D. student David Castro.

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Accolades 2 Graduate Affairs wins for Excellence in Innovation The Graduate Affairs Admissions and Enrollment Office was recognized for “Excellence in Innovation” at Hobsons’ annual Innovation & Best Practice Awards, held in London on March 3, 2015.

Hobsons, a student lifecycle management solution, acknowledged KAUST’s unique adaptations and usage of their student management tools known as Apply Yourself (AY) and CONNECT.

Hadjichristidis wins highest ACS honor On March 25, Nikos Hadjichristidis, professor of chemical science in the Physical Science and Engineering Division, was honored with the prestigious ACS Award in Polymer Chemistry at the 249th American Chemical Society National Meeting & Exposition in Denver, Colorado.

Abdul Latif Abdul Latif, lead developer in Admissions, was on hand to accept the award. "It is great to be recognized for excellence by an industry-leading software provider, knowing that the work we are doing is cutting-edge and very rewarding," he said.

“Graduate Affairs has successfully taken AY and CONNECT from a basic online relationship management platform, and have expanded it into an online access point, not only for prospective students, but also for internal applicants, the Visiting Students, Visiting Students Research Program applicants and the entire onboarding and student exit processes at our institution,” said Greg Murphy, associate director of Admissions.

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The award, sponsored by the ExxonMobil Chemical Company, represents the highest honor in the field of polymer science. It was presented to Hadjichristidis in the presence of a packed audience that included KAUST senior leadership and many of the world’s top scientists in polymer science and polymer chemistry, including Robert H. Grubbs, the 2005 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry.

“I’m very happy because this is the biggest award I have ever received, and it was under the affiliation of KAUST,” said Hadjichristidis.

Hadjichristidis’ research focuses on the synthesis of polymeric materials with complex macromolecular architecture (star, comb, cyclic, dendritic). His group at KAUST’s Polymer Synthesis Laboratory works on various projects, including block copolymer membranes for selective water transport, polymeric membranes for fuel cells and batteries, and unusual polymeric materials.

CEMSE paper earns IEEE-NEMS honors A recent collaboration between the Electromechanical Microsystems & Polymer Integration Research Lab (EMPIRE) and the Sensing Magnetism and Microsystems Lab (SMM) within the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Science and Engineering Division (CEMSE) brought home the best paper award at the 10th IEEE International Conference on Nano/Micro Engineered and Molecular Systems in Xi’an, China. The winning paper, which was presented by doctoral student Ying Yi, was entitled, "Electromagnetically powered electrolytic pump and thermo-responsive valve for drug delivery”.

The device can provide long-term and localized drug delivery by utilizing an electrolytic pump in combination with a solid-drug-in-reservoir approach that was developed by Yi and research scientist Ulrich Buttner from the Microfluidic Core Lab. They worked under the supervision of Assistant Professor (adjunct) Ian Foulds. The longstanding problem of undesired drug diffusion has been solved by using a magneto-thermoresponsive valve developed by Yi, doctoral student Amir Zaher and postdoctoral fellow Dr. Omar Yassine, under the supervision of Assistant Professor Jurgen Kosel.

“Integrating those different concepts led to a miniaturized device that strikes with high performance and simplicity. In particular, both the pump and the valve are operated by the same electromagnetic field, which enables wireless device control,” said Kosel.

www.kaust.edu.sa

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Securing the Kingdom’s energy future

By Meres J. Weche

4 The rising costs of natural gases continue to prompt governments and industry to seek lower-cost fuel alternatives. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for instance, is consuming an increasingly large portion of its own fossil fuels on energy requirements such as air conditioning and water. In the search for a solution, crude oils such as Arabian Super Light (ASL) are being considered as primary or backup fuels for heavy-duty gas turbines.

General Electric (GE) and KAUST have recently joined forces to explore the feasibility of using crude oil straight from the ground to produce energy.

“GE has about 500 gas turbines in the Kingdom, and they are the largest provider of gas turbines for power generation by far,” said KAUST Professor and Director of the Clean Combustion Research Center (CCRC) William Roberts.

Having the option to rely on unrefined crude in case of emergency is important,” CCRC Laboratory Manager John McIntosh The highest efficiency gas turbines, called F-class, typically burn natural gas. But the Kingdom has set a specific requirement that some new turbines must also be able to operate on Arabian Super Light or Arabian Extra Light (ASL or AXL), which are unrefined crudes or non-distillates.

“Saudi Arabia doesn’t require all its turbines to be optimally designed to burn any fuel, anytime and anywhere. But, for energy security reasons, having the option to rely on unrefined crude in case of emergency is important,” said CCRC Laboratory Manager John McIntosh. “Moreover, distilling fuels is very expensive, so there’s an economic incentive for further testing.”

Burning the midnight oil In order to satisfy the Saudi government’s prerequisites, GE has teamed up with KAUST to conduct studies on the development of heavy-duty turbines that would be capable of burning crude oil straight out of the ground. Unlike heavier crudes used to make asphalt, ASL and AXL are categorized as very light crudes.

But they still contain traces of vanadium, a highly corrosive metal.

Vanadium is a naturally occurring pollutant in oil that is found in the Earth’s crust.

The advantage of Arabian Super Light is that it has a very low concentration of vanadium—about 1ppm (part per million). This collaborative research seeks to discover exactly how corrosive this concentration is and what material must be used to manufacture turbines that won’t break down under long-term burning of ASL/AXL. The experiment consists of building a rig at KAUST through the High Pressure Combustion Laboratory (HPCL) to perform corrosion tests on turbine materials.

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THE BEACON | May 2015

A major consideration is how to insulate the test rig to ensure it can withstand extreme pressure and operating temperatures of 900 degrees Celsius or more. As the oil burns, the gases containing the vanadium salts coat the inner walls of the rig. GE carefully selected the HPCL at KAUST as a partner because there are very few laboratories with the capacity to burn crude at such high temperatures and pressures.

The science behind the process As CCRC research technician Jose Maria Silva Corrugedo explained: “We’re going to expose different samples during the experiment to help determine which material is best suited to build the turbines.”

Roberts shared: “There are three main issues: efficiency, corrosion and emission for the various fuels that are available not just in the Kingdom but worldwide.” The ultimate goal is to understand why vanadium causes corrosion and how that can be prevented.

From the engineering side, the CCRC team wants to look into how to keep the rig operating at high pressure. If initial results are promising, the CCRC hopes to expand the collaboration to a long-term program, allowing for a greater understanding of corrosion, and ultimately leading to significant discoveries to better inform both government and corporate entities.

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‫تأمين مستقبل الطاقة‬ ‫في المملكة‬ ‫ً‬ ‫أخيرا شركة جنرال إلكتريك (‪ )GE‬وجامعة الملك عبداهلل للعلوم‬ ‫انضمت‬ ‫والتقنية في مشروع بحثي تعاوني يهدف الستكشاف جدوى استخدام‬ ‫النفط الخام‪ ،‬كالنفط العربي الخفيف (‪ )ASL‬مباشرة من األرض كوقود‬ ‫أساسي أو احتياطي لتوربينات الغاز ذات التشغيل الثقيل‪ .‬حيث تشهد‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ً‬ ‫متزايدا األمر الذي دفع العديد من حكومات‬ ‫ارتفاعا‬ ‫أسعار الغاز الطبيعي‬ ‫العالم البحث عن بدائل للطاقة تكون أقل تكلفة‪ .‬فعلى سبيل المثال‪،‬‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ً‬ ‫كبيرا من الوقود األحفوري‬ ‫جزءا‬ ‫تستهلك المملكة العربية السعودية‬ ‫التي تنتجه على احتياجاتها من الطاقة في تكييف الهواء وتحلية المياه‪.‬‬ ‫ويقول البروفيسور وليام روبرتس‪ ،‬مدير عام مركز أبحاث االحتراق النظيف‬ ‫في جامعة الملك عبداهلل (‪" :)CCRC‬تمتلك جنرال إلكتريك حوالي‬ ‫وتعد أكبر مزود لتوربينات توليد الطاقة‬ ‫خمسمائة توربين غاز في المملكة‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫بالغاز في العالم"‪ .‬كما أن التوربينات من طراز (‪ )F‬التي تنتجها جنرال‬ ‫إلكتريك تصنف من أفضل توربينات الغاز كفاءة غير أنها في العادة تعمل‬ ‫ً‬ ‫شروطا معينة للتوربينات‬ ‫بالغاز الطبيعي فقط‪ .‬ولكن المملكة حددت‬ ‫الجديدة تقتضي أن تكون قادرة على العمل على النفط الخام وغير‬ ‫المكرر مثل النفط العربي الخفيف (‪ )ASL‬أو سوبر الخفيف (‪.)AXL‬‬ ‫ويقول جون ماكينتوش مدير المختبر في مركز أبحاث االحتراق النظيف‪:‬‬ ‫"ال توجد حاجة إلى أن تكون جميع التوربينات في المملكة مصممة‬ ‫ً‬ ‫تحديدا للعمل على وقود معين‪ .‬ولكن من المهم وجود خيارات االعتماد‬

‫على النفط الخام غير المكرر إلنتاج الطاقة إذا تطلب األمر‪ .‬كما أن‬ ‫المكاسب االقتصادية التي قد تترتب على استخدام النفط الخام في‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ً‬ ‫كبيرا لمواصلة هذه‬ ‫حافزا‬ ‫تعد‬ ‫ظل التكلفة المرتفعة لعملية تكرير النفط ّ‬ ‫األبحاث والتجارب"‪.‬‬ ‫حرق النفط الخام مباشرة من االرض‬ ‫ولتحقيق الشروط التي طلبتها المملكة تقوم شركة جنرال إلكتريك‬ ‫بالتعاون مع جامعة الملك عبداهلل إلجراء دراسات على تطوير توربينات‬ ‫للتشغيل الثقيل قادرة على حرق النفط الخام المستخرج مباشرة من األرض‬ ‫ً‬ ‫خصوصا الخام العربي الخفيف ‪ ASL‬و‪ .AXL‬وعلى الرغم من أن هذه‬ ‫ً‬ ‫ً‬ ‫تعد من الخامات الخفيفة جدا خالفا لتلك التي تستخدم في‬ ‫الخامات ّ‬ ‫صناعة األسفلت‪ ،‬إال أنها ال تزال تحتوي على نسبة من الفاناديوم‪ ،‬وهو‬ ‫ويعد من الشوائب الطبيعية في النفط‪ ،‬ولكنه‬ ‫معدن يساعد على التآكل‬ ‫ّ‬ ‫يوجد في الخام العربي الخفيف بتركيز منخفض ً‬ ‫جدا– حوالي جزء واحد‬ ‫في المليون‪ .‬وتهتم شركة جنرال إلكتريك في معرفة حجم التآكل الناتج‬ ‫عن هذا التركيز ونوعية المواد التي يجب استخدامها لتصنيع التوربينات‬ ‫بحيث تتحمل االحتراق لفترات طويلة ً‬ ‫جدا‪.‬‬

‫وتشمل التجربة بناء نظام أنابيب اختبار في جامعة الملك عبداهلل‬ ‫بواسطة مختبر أبحاث احتراق الضغط العالي (‪ )HPCL‬إلجراء اختبارات‬ ‫التآكل على المواد المتقدمة من جنرال إلكتريك والتي تدخل في صناعة‬ ‫التوربينات‪ .‬حيث سيتم حرق خام النفط العربي الخفيف لمدة ‪ 2000‬ساعة‬ ‫مما يتطلب تجهيزات معقدة ومتطورة خصوصا في تقنية عزل‬ ‫متواصلة ّ‬ ‫أنابيب االختبار للتأكد من صمودها تحت الضغط الشديد ودرجات الحرارة‬

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‫المرتفعة التي قد تتجاوز ‪ 900‬درجة مئوية‪ .‬و لهذا السبب وقع اختيار‬ ‫شركة جنرال إلكتريك على مختبر احتراق الضغط العالي في جامعة الملك‬ ‫عبداهلل لمرافقه المتطورة وقدرته على إجراء تجارب حرق النفط الخام‬ ‫في جميع الظروف‪.‬‬ ‫أهمية المشروع العلمية‬ ‫يوضح خوسيه ماريا سيلفا كوريجيدو‪ ،‬فني األبحاث في مركز أبحاث‬ ‫االحتراق النظيف في جامعة الملك عبداهلل‪" :‬سنختبر عينات من مواد‬ ‫مختلفة من جنرال إلكتريك ثم نرسل النتائج لهم‪ ،‬وعلى أساسها ستتمكن‬ ‫أي من هذه المواد هي األنسب لبناء التوربينات"‪.‬‬ ‫الشركة من تحديد ٍّ‬ ‫وال تقتصر أهمية هذه المعلومات والنتائج على الحكومات أو الشركات‬ ‫التي ترغب في شراء التوربينات ولكنها مفيدة ً‬ ‫جدا لشركة جنرال إلكتريك‬ ‫ً‬ ‫خصوصا في أعمال الصيانة‪ .‬ويشرح البروفيسور وليام روبرتس أن هذه‬

‫المعلومات تسلط الضوء على ثالث مسائل رئيسية هي‪ :‬كفاءة التشغيل‪،‬‬ ‫معدل التآكل‪ ،‬ودرجة االنبعاثات الضارة لمختلف أنواع الوقود المتوفرة‬ ‫ليس فقط في المملكة ولكن في جميع أنحاء العالم‪ .‬ولكن الهدف‬ ‫األساسي من هذه التجارب هو دراسة معدن الفاناديوم في النفط‬ ‫الخام ودوره في عملية تآكل التوربينات أثناء االحتراق وكيفية معالجة‬ ‫ذلك‪ .‬أما من الناحية الهندسية فيرغب فريق مركز أبحاث االحتراق النظيف‬ ‫في جامعة الملك عبداهلل النظر في كيفية الحفاظ على أداء نظام‬ ‫أنابيب االختبار تحت الضغط العالي ودرجة الحرارة المرتفعة دون إضعاف‬ ‫األنابيب أو حدوث تسربات فيها أو تفجرها‪ .‬وفي حال تمكنهم من تحقيق‬ ‫ذلك سيتم تشغيل المشروع لمدة عشر سنوات‪ ،‬وسوف ينتج عنه العديد‬ ‫من النتائج العلمية المؤثرة والقابلة للنشر‪.‬‬

‫‪1. An AutoCAD rendering of a cross-section of the test rig that‬‬ ‫‪will be built in the CCRC.‬‬ ‫‪2. An AutoCAD rendering of the completed test rig that will be‬‬ ‫‪used in the GE/KAUST collaboration.‬‬ ‫‪3. Some of the wrenches used to work on the test rig. The‬‬ ‫‪wrench in the middle is of normal size (3/4 inch) for scale.‬‬ ‫‪4. The engine room of the CCRC HPCL, where tremendous‬‬ ‫‪volumes of compressed air are generated and stored.‬‬

Adding beauty to the science

By Nicholas Demille Paper and pencil are used infrequently now, but the discipline of scientific illustration remains largely unchanged.

Since the dawn of science, illustrations have been used to tease out ephemeral concepts and catalog details for which words did not exist.

“It is often said that a picture is worth a thousand words,” said Jean Fréchet, KAUST vice president for research. “nowhere is this adage more apt than in the realm of scientific publication.”

The Office of Academic Writing Services was created in the spirit of this idea. Its mission is simple: support KAUST faculty members in the presentation and publication of their research with writing and editing services, the development of key visuals and more.

“The work that our trained visual artists and animators do is absolutely critical to bringing our research to life,” said Fréchet.

Translators of a complex language Ivan Gromicho is a scientific illustrator in the Office of Academic Writing Services. He got hooked on paleontology at the age of 13 when his uncle, an amateur paleontologist, encouraged him to go along on excavations of fossil beds.

“Digging was fun, but pretty quickly I started sketching the finds, which led to drawings for a museum and eventually a number of summer courses on scientific illustration,” said Gromicho.

Gromicho first studied geology as preparation for earning a master’s degree in scientific illustration, and the rest is prehistory. Before getting the call to come to KAUST, he spent years creating massive exhibit illustrations of dinosaurs for his museum clients and historical reconstructions for the German Archaeology Institute.

“The major difference there was that projects took six months to complete due to the size and complexity,” said Gromicho. “Working here requires collaboration with the team and completing projects quickly. Here, a final product has to come together in a matter of weeks rather than months. I am also challenged by the diversity of subjects.

One day I might work on neuroscience and the next on membranes.”

“I see my job as a translator,” said Heno Hwang, another scientific illustrator in the Office of Academic Writing Services. “Science is a complicated language that many people do not speak fluently—illustration is simply a device to help them understand.”

Hwang earned a certificate in visual effects, and then took a master’s degree in medical art from the University of Dundee in Scotland. Before coming to KAUST in 2014, he lived in Seoul, South Korea, where he created 3D art for staff at the Biomedical Research Institute and their collaborators.

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THE BEACON | May 2015

“Many times I will make a sketch and the researcher will have envisioned something very similar,” said Hwang.

“I always try to keep in mind that this is not just art that we’re making, it’s a device to help people understand.”

Visualizing success “They have a complementary set of skills,” said Virginia Unkefer, manager of the Office of Academic Writing Services. “All of our team members have the vocabulary of science. Their skills are complementary in ways we couldn’t have anticipated, which has led to some really exceptional work.”

The team has worked with 42 faculty members to date, and their work speaks for itself. They have helped land KAUST papers on the covers of some highly respected journals, including Nature Photonics, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Advanced Materials, Biomaterials Science, Soft Matter and many more. There is even a small gallery of the team’s images in the Engineering and Science Hall.

When pressed for examples, Unkefer talked excitedly about work the team did in collaboration with the Visualization Lab for Pierre Magistretti, dean of the Biological and Environmental Science and Engineering Division. “They photographed a walkthrough of cerebral tissue and then adapted the experience for print and academic presentations," said Unkefer. "We didn't know the team would work together in this way, it just happened organically.”

From sketchpad to scholarly journal “Illustrations are an important part of scientific communication, but beyond their accuracy and aesthetics, they help capture the imagination of a reader,” said Aram Amassian, assistant professor of material science and engineering. “We have worked closely with Dr. Unkefer and her team over the past few years to illustrate and evoke simple messages from our work through cover art illustrations, many of which have been featured on the covers of prestigious journals in the materials field.”

The process is straightforward, even if the research is complex. Faculty members sit down with the artists and try to convey what is important and exciting about their work. The artists listen, and "oftentimes before the end of the meeting, they will have a freehand sketch of the idea,” said Unkefer.

“We delve into the science with them; we ask questions; we do some reading online and of course we read the paper,” said Gromicho.

“Researchers have also adapted to work with us and easily understand our sketches after awhile," said Anastasia Khrenova, an artist and photographer on the team. “Gradually, they get used to our style of work. And they realize that we can add beauty to the science—we can provide important information in a beautiful way.”

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1. An illustration of the structural molecular components of septate junctions in a coral species for a paper published by Manuel Aranda and Christian Voolstra, assistant professors, marine science, and collaborators from Monaco.

A collaborative effort of Gromicho and Hwang, this illustration combines a three-dimensional model developed by Hwang, with images of the coral treated, painted and composed by Gromicho.

2. KAUST scientific illustrator Gromicho works on an illustration he co-developed with Hwang.

3. Professor Timothy Ravasi (bioscience) asked Gromicho to create an illustration that would tell the story of dynamic epigenetic control of highly conserved noncoding elements during the developmental stages of several species. In this digital painting, Gromicho used traditional line drawing to communicate a complex story in a clear way.

4. This cover of the Journal of Materials Chemistry C was created by Khrenova to illustrate material scientist Aram Amassian’s invention of a new probe for organic electronics and photovoltaics. When illustrations are made for a cover, beauty dominates over technical information to invite readers into the publication.

www.kaust.edu.sa

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Red Sea could hold key to new HIV treatment

By Caitlin Clark

The cure or means to prevent the severe effects from many viral infections might lie right at our doorstep.” Dr. Christian Voolstra What if a ubiquitous marine alga found in tropical and subtropical waters and reefs, including those just off KAUST’s coast, could provide a novel mechanism for combatting HIV? Lobophora variegata, a species of marine brown algae, may be just the key. Christian R. Voolstra, KAUST assistant professor of marine science, Stephan Kremb, KAUST postdoctoral fellow, and a team of researchers from Germany investigated the antiviral properties of L. variegata, discovering that aqueous extracts of the alga inhibit entry of HIV type 1 virus into cells.

Issues with antiretroviral drugs Although many antiretroviral therapies have been developed since HIV was first identified in the 1980s, “current treatment of HIV-1 infection still has several shortcomings, with the emergence of resistant viruses, severe side effects and high costs are the most pressing issues,” Voolstra said.

Most available antiretroviral drugs affect viral enzymes that are important for virus replication, but there are few available therapies targeting the HIV-1 entry process. Voolstra noted the entry process is still a “highly promising target for antiviral intervention, as this keeps the virus out of the cells, stops the initiation of the replication cycle and protects the human host’s cells from infection.”

Targeting the viral membrane L. variegata has well-known chemical defense mechanisms against potentially deleterious microorganisms, including marine fungi and protozoans. The researchers discovered that L. variegata’s active compounds target the HIV viral membrane, inactivating the virus particle.

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THE BEACON | May 2015

“L. variegata’s action against the virus points to a potentially new mechanism of antiviral interference,” said Voolstra.

“Targeting a more unspecific structure of the virus particle could help avoid the problem of viral resistance, enabling L. variegata to serve as a broad-spectrum antiviral agent targeting other enveloped viral pathogens.”

Providing resistance from infection Most importantly, L. variegata’s mechanism of action could provide resistance from viral infection, rather than just suppressing the effects of infection. “This is an important aspect in the treatment of viral infections,” Voolstra explained, “as it may help avoid various detrimental effects to the human body caused by today’s commonly used antiretrovirals.”

The researchers also showed that L. variegata’s active compound inhibited a panel of HIV-1 strains, including viruses using different cellular receptors to bind to and infect cells; a multidrug resistant strain; and a primary isolate from HIV-infected individuals, signifying that it is a potential broad-spectrum candidate.

“Our study revealed a potent broad-spectrum inhibitory activity on HIV-1 which should be explored in greater detail,” said paper first author Kremb. “Once the active compound is identified, it can be chemically modified to boost its inhibitory potential and to improve its physiochemical properties.

It can then be further characterized in pre-clinical studies to assess its full potential.”

Marine “pharmacy” in the Red Sea “Our study once again demonstrates the great potential of the marine biosphere as a rich source for new bio-active molecules,” noted Voolstra. “In particular, the highly diverse coral reefs off the Saudi coast have not yet been well studied. We must take a closer look at the wealth of the marine ‘pharmacy’ of the Red Sea – the cure or means to prevent the severe effects from many viral infections might lie right at our doorstep.”

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‫طحالب من البحر األحمر قد‬ ‫تكون المفتاح لمكافحة‬ ‫فيروس نقص المناعة‬ ‫المكتسبة ‪HIV‬‬ ‫توصل باحثون من جامعة الملك عبداهلل للعلوم والتقنية إلى بوادر اكتشاف‬ ‫ً‬ ‫أن األبحاث في‬ ‫عالج فيروس مرض نقص المناعة المكتسبة‪،‬‬ ‫وانطالقا من ّ‬ ‫بيت الحكمة الجديد تهدف بشكل رئيسي لوضع حلول للتحديات الكبيرة التي‬ ‫تواجه العالم‪ ،‬قام فريق بحثي مكون من البروفيسور كريستيان فولسترا‪،‬‬ ‫أستاذ مساعد في جامعة الملك عبداهلل في قسم علوم البحار‪ ،‬وستيفان‬ ‫كرمب‪ ،‬زميل ما بعد الدكتوراه في الجامعة وفريق من الباحثين األلمان‬ ‫بتأليف ورقة بحثية‪ ،‬نشرت في مجلة ‪ PLOS ONE‬العلمية‪ ،‬تناولت دراسة‬ ‫البنّ ية التي تعيش في البحر األحمر تسمى (لوبوفورا‬ ‫نوع معين من الطحالب ُ‬ ‫فاريجاتا) يعتقد أنها المفتاح لمكافحة فيروس نقص المناعة المكتسبة لما‬ ‫تمتلكه من خصائص مثبطة تكافح الفيروسات وتمنع دخول الفيروس إلى‬ ‫داخل الخاليا‪ .‬ويقول البروفيسور فولسترا‪" :‬ال يوجد عالج فاعل لفيروس نقص‬ ‫المناعة المكتسبة في الوقت الحالي ولكن أظهرت دراستنا أن طحالب‬ ‫لوبوفورا فاريجاتا التي تعيش في البحر األحمر تمتلك آليات دفاع كيميائية‬

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‫ضد الكائنات الدقيقة الضارة‪ ،‬بما في ذلك الفطريات البحرية وهذه المواد‬ ‫الكيميائية تعمل بفاعلية ضد فيروس نقص المناعة المكتسبة حيث تستهدف‬ ‫بالتحديد غشاء الفيروس وتعطل جزيئاته مما يمنع وصوله إلى داخل الخاليا‬ ‫ويحد من عملية استنساخ الفيروس وبالتالي يحمي الخلية المضيفة من‬ ‫العدوى"‪.‬‬

‫كما أن آلية عمل هذه المواد الكيميائية في طحالب لوبوفورا فاريجاتا‬ ‫قد ال تقتصر على تثبيط آثار العدوى بل توفير مقاومة كاملة من العدوى‬ ‫الفيروسية وبالتالي تساعد على تجنب العديد من اآلثار الجانبية الضارة‬ ‫ً‬ ‫حاليا‪ .‬ويقول المؤلف األول‬ ‫التي تسببها مضادات الفيروسات المستخدمة‬ ‫للورقة البحثية وزميل ما بعد الدكتوراه ستيفان كرمب‪" :‬كشفت دراستنا عن‬ ‫وجود مواد كيمائية ذات قدرة تثبيط واسعة لنشاط فيروس نقص المناعة‬ ‫المكتسبة ‪ HIV-1‬والتي ينبغي دراستها بصورة مكثفة حتى يتم تحديد‬ ‫ً‬ ‫كيميائيا لتعزيز قدرته وتحسين خصائصه‬ ‫مركب نشط يستطيع العلماء تعديله‬ ‫الفيزيائية ومن ثم تقييمه في التجارب والدراسات ما قبل السريرية"‪.‬‬ ‫ويختم البروفيسور فولسترا بقوله‪" :‬تظهر دراستنا مرة أخرى مدى اإلمكانات‬ ‫الكبيرة للبيئة الحيوية البحرية كمورد غني بمواد الجزيئات الحيوية النشطة‬ ‫الجديدة‪ ،‬وعلى وجه الخصوص الشعاب المرجانية المتنوعة قبالة الساحل‬ ‫السعودي والتي لم يتم دراستها بشكل جيد بعد‪ .‬وينبغي علينا اآلن أن نلتفت‬ ‫إلى الثروة الحيوية الغنية للبحر األحمر والتي تؤهله بجدارة ليكون صيدلية‬ ‫بحرية توفر لنا األدوية والعقاقير والعالجات للعديد من األمراض وااللتهابات‬ ‫الفيروسية" ‪.‬‬

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‫‪www.kaust.edu.sa‬‬

‫‪1. A researcher collects algal samples in a Red Sea coral reef for further‬‬ ‫‪analysis in the laboratory at KAUST.‬‬ ‫‪2,3. Researchers treat human cells with an aqueous extract of L. variegata.‬‬ ‫‪Various cell compartments were stained to visualize effects.‬‬ ‫‪(Blue = nucleus; Green = actin; Red = cell membrane). The extract leads to‬‬ ‫‪an increase in the number and size of membrane aggregates (red dots). This‬‬ ‫‪finding points to an interaction of the active compound with membranes.‬‬ ‫‪4. Christian Voolstra (left) and Stephan Georg Kremb at KAUST’s HCS facility.‬‬

The challenges of computing in three dimensions: a conversation with Peter Wonka

By Meres J. Weche

"Let's say you are driving on a highway and want to select a restaurant or hotel along the way, or you want to know what the area looks like and get a feel for the environment.

Well, 3D could help with that,” Wonka said.

Peter Wonka is the associate director of the Visual Computing Center and a professor of computer science in the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Science and Engineering Division. His research focuses on computer graphics and visualization as applied to the modeling and analysis of urban and geospatial data.

It's not like there's one program or one algorithm that allows you to click a button and immediately get a 3D model out.” said Peter Wonka Today, people often use a combination of Google Maps and Google Street View, a car navigation system or standalone GPS when finding directions. These tools use two-dimensional methods. But researchers in the field are striving to create data-rich, three-dimensional maps. “Constructing 3D objects out of images or laser scans is one of the biggest research problems in computer science right now.”

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THE BEACON | May 2015

Modeling what doesn’t yet exist Sometimes buildings or entire urban environments need to be created from scratch. A perfect example of this is the KAUST campus, which was built from a model on a piece of land. How could someone experience a virtual tour through a city that does not yet exist?

A computer scientist would typically work with someone like an architect, urban planner, or even an artist to create a variety of models such as office spaces, buildings, streets and boulevards, or film scenes. “There are multiple design stages in the lifecycle of a given project, so modeling is generally very time-consuming,” said Wonka.

Such modeling projects involve many different aspects. A simple building can take many hours to design, and a movie or game studio can routinely require a hundred people continually modeling.

An example of these varying facets is resizing a building after all the windows have been placed in the model. An architect may also require that the optimal outdoor views be seen from the meeting rooms and not from the bathrooms. Oftentimes, there isn’t a firm spatial concept, but all these constraints need to be taken into account when computing the geometric realization.

Wonka's group is currently working with Boeing on designing three-dimensional objects for the aerospace industry.

“It’s about having some modeling tools that help the designers to realize their vision quickly,” said Wonka.

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1. An urban layout consisting of family houses and apartment

buildings that was automatically computed from high-level goals specified by a user of Wonka’s research team’s software prototype.

The reconstruction aspect One KAUST-funded and developed initiative called FalconViz helps provide life-saving solutions through the development of high-quality aerial surveying technology. Their rapid response UAV drones can scan a full-scale 3D map of a four kilometer-square area struck by disaster in half an hour. This information can then be communicated to first responders. The data acquisition performed by these tiny helicopters provides a rich pipeline of images, which, from a research perspective, are studied to find optimal ways of converting the data into a 3D model.

“It has many stages,” said Wonka. “If you think of taking, let’s say 50 images of a house, it's not like there's one program or one algorithm that allows you to click a button and immediately get a 3D model out.”

The visualization team tackles mid-size computational design and urban reconstruction projects ranging from six months to a year. As new students or postdocs join the group, the scopes are continuously redefined. “Some people are interested in geometry and focus on three-dimensional shapes modeling rather thanimages, while others are more into the design aspect or design analysis,” Wonka explained.

www.kaust.edu.sa

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My University David Mantilla David Mantilla is from Bogota, Colombia. He received a bachelor’s degree in microbiology from the University of Los Andes before coming to KAUST as a master’s student. Mantilla stayed on after his master’s and is now a doctoral candidate focused on the overuse of antibiotics to fight bacterial infection in both medical and agricultural settings.

“When I came to KAUST, I was looking to add a new dimension to my career—KAUST has given me the opportunity to explore the engineering field and combine it with my training in microbiology," he said.

Mantilla enjoys yoga and has recently acquired an interest in freediving. He’s a microbiologist who understands the engineering aspects of wastewater treatment, which he feels is both rare and perfectly suited for his future career.

“Wastewater systems seem to be an important hotspot for acquiring and dispersing the genes responsible for antibiotic resistance, but the conditions promoting its persistence in these systems are poorly understood," he explained. "We investigate the decay kinetics of a 'superbug' and its resistance genes under different conditions in order to come up with water treatment settings that minimize the persistence of the genes and the resistant isolates—work that has implications in public health, water reuse and more.”

When asked about his academic and research experience, Mantilla is unequivocal. “I’ve had absolute freedom when selecting and executing my projects, since budget is not a limiting factor. Unlimited resources, an excellent advisor and globally-recognized academic partners have been the norm during my studies," he said.

KAUST celebrates Earth Day The KAUST community came together on April 23 to take part in the international observance of Earth Day. The Harbor Sports Club Track and Field was packed from end to end with activities, music, food and families.

Bicycles, iPads, mobile phones and more were handed out the the evening's raffle winners. Sack relay races were held, where participants had to race to a recycling bin and unload a sack full of plastic bottles before racing back to their team.

The Facilities & Community team put together a celebration complete with live music, a magic show, a master of ceremonies to keep the energy high and lots of games for the kids. A game of football was organized with kids in large inflatable balls, and the bouncy castles, slides and ball pits were at capacity all evening long.

Earth Day is a global event celebrated in over 192 countries worldwide in support of environmental protection. At KAUST, the advocacy for environmental issues extends beyond this annual event and is part of the University's daily commitment to environmental sustainability.

Fuad Jamour Jamour is Syrian but was born in Dubai, and studied computer engineering at the University of Jordan before completing his master's degree at KAUST. Currently he is a doctoral student in the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Science and Engineering Division.

His decision to come to KAUST "started as a simple conversation with a friend who had already applied to study at KAUST and was accepted here," Jamour explained. "When he first told me about it, I actually didn't believe him - it was too big of a thing to believe."

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Jamour's research at KAUST concentrates on ways to represent and model interactions. These interactions could be chemicals in a chemical network that have potential applications in chemistry, or they could be proteins in a biological network, for example.

“My research is about algorithms in large evolving networks. Facebook is a good example of a large evolving network—people are coming and going, following and un-following each other. I focus on how you quantify and make sense of those interactions," he said.

In 2011, Jamour participated in a programming contest and ended up competing in Arizona as part of the KAUST team. Outside of his studies, he's quick to note that he enjoys many activities, including working out at the gym and going to eat delicious shawarama in Jeddah. "The food is absolutely the best in Jeddah," Jamour said.

2 1. Kids look on eagerly as prizes are raffled off during 2015 Earth Day celebrations.

2. Community members relax and watch music and comedy acts on the main stage.

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THE BEACON | May 2015