2008 KIEC - The 2008 Kentucky Innovation and Entrepreneurship Conference - Program Book

COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY

OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

700 CAPITAL AVENUE SUITE 100 FRANKFORT, KY 40601 (502) 564-2611 FAX: (502) 564-2517

STEVEN L. BESHEAR GOVERNOR

Please accept a warm, personal welcome to the 4th Kentucky Innovation and Enterprise Conference.

I share the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation’s strong commitment to innovation and enterprise development in our state. This event is a critical platform for university scientists, engineers, small technology businesses and graduate students who desire meaningful dialogue about cutting-edge research ideas and promising new technologies with commercial potential.

The Kentucky Innovation and Enterprise Conference also is a significant opportunity for entrepreneurs. Here they can learn about the range of resources available in our state and at the federal level in transferring innovations from the laboratory to the marketplace.

Best wishes to all participants at this important symposium. And a hearty round of applause is due each individual who has made this experience possible.

Sincerely,

Steven L. Beshear

An Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D

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REGISTER TODAY!

2008 Kentucky SBIR/STTR Conference April 24-25, 2008, Holiday Inn Hurstbourne at I-64, Louisville, KY

The Conference: This fiscal year, 11 federal agencies will award more than $2.2 billion to small and start-up firms that perform innovative, high-risk R&D and commercialize the resulting technologies. These awards will be made through the SBIR and STTR programs. KY companies should explore this source of capital.

Wish to Register?

GO TO: The KY SBIR/STTR MATCHING FUNDS BOOTH – PRE-FUNCTION AREA Or Register online at http://www.kstc.com or at http://ksef.kstc.com. If you have a problem, contact Debbie Rempfer at drempfer@kstc.com.

** Online Registration Closes this Friday, April 18 at 1:00 PM ET ** Deadlines & Fees: Please register immediately for the conference; $75.00 KY Resident, $175.00 Out-of-state. Registration fees include presentation materials, continental breakfast, lunch and refreshment breaks. Online registration closes at 1:00 PM ET on 04-18-08. For more details see http://ksef.kstc.com.

Interested in More Information?

Visit http://ksef.kstc.com for agendas, speakers, location information and online registration. For additional questions contact Mahendra Jain at KSEF (859-255-3613 x230).

Organizers Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation (KSTC) Kentucky Science and Engineering Foundation (KSEF)

Sponsors Cabinet for Economic Development CED/DCI Kentucky Manufacturing Assistance Center (KMAC) Kentucky Technology, Inc./University of Kentucky University of Louisville Western Kentucky University

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Governor Beshear Welcome Letter…………………………………………………………………………

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KSTC President and Executive Vice President Welcome Letter…………………………………..

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Register Now!! SBIR/STTR Conference, Louisville April 24-25, 2008………………………….

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KSEF Welcome and Overview………………………………………………………………………………..

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Food and Functions………………………………………………………………………………………………

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Maps and Floor Plans……………………………………………………………………………………………

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Conference Program…………………………………………………………………………………………….

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Invited Speaker Summaries…………………………………………………………………………………..

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Invited Speaker Bios…………………………………………………………………………………………….

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Poster Presentations – List of Presenters………………………………………………………………..

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Poster Presentations – List of Abstracts………………………………………………………………….

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List of Attendees …………………………………………………………………………………………………

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Survey…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

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NOTES………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 60

KENTUCKY SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING FOUNDATION

Did you know that between 2002 and 2007…

9 KSEF awards helped secure over $93 Million in Federal and Private funds, an ROI of over 8:1 9 11 KSEF awardees received NSF CAREER awards between 2002-2007 (out of 14 awarded in Kentucky) 9 At least 21 KSEF Awardees can be considered in the “Million Dollar Club”, securing over $50Million in Federal grants and contracts 9 A sample of the top 16 most cited KSEF awardees has been referenced over 1,500 times in peer reviewed papers 9 KSEF awardees have formed five new businesses, three potential start-ups, nine additional technology transfers agreements, and they have reported over 110 invention disclosures The Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation (KSTC) has invested in home grown ideas for innovation and enterprise development through several state-funded programs including the Kentucky Science and Engineering Foundation (KSEF), Kentucky Commercialization Fund (KCF), Kentucky Enterprise Fund (KEF) and its SBIR/STTR assistance programs.

Since 2001, awards for more than $11 Million have been made through the KSEF R&D Excellence Program to advance research ideas, and more than $3 Million have been awarded through the KCF Program to promote the commercialization of technologies developed by researchers in Kentucky institutions of higher education. Additionally, SBIR/STTR related workshops and conferences organized

by KSEF have enabled faculty and small businesses in Kentucky seek federal funds for their innovation research.

We are helping to promote Innovation Research in the State of Kentucky. Help us to promote your work!! http://www.kstc.com/ http://ksef.kstc.com/

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MENU

Continental Breakfast Assorted Danish/Muffins/Bagels Sliced Fresh Fruit Chilled Juices, Starbucks Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee, Herbal Tea Mid Morning Break Starbucks Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee, Herbal Tea Lunch Break (Boxed Lunch*, Choice of One) ASIAN CHICKEN WRAP Grilled Chicken Julienne Seasoned with Salt and Pepper, Wrapped in a Tomato Torilla with Baby Greens, Julienne Onion and Peppers, Tossed with Orange Ginger Sauce VEGGIE WRAP (VEGAN) Shredded Romaine and Iceberg Lettuce with Julienne Yellow Squash, Zucchini, Carrots, Red Peppers and Asparagus, Drizzled with White Balsamic Vinaigrette and Wrapped in a Wheat Tortilla FRENCH COUNTRY SIDE Flaky Croissant with Shaved Turkey, Topped with Creamy Boursin Cheese Spread, Lettuce and Tomatoes PRIDE OF THE BLUEGRASS Shaved Turkey, Ham, Crisp Bacon, Swiss Cheese, Lettuce and Tomatoes Stacked on a Wheat Bun *Each Boxed Lunch is Accompanied by Tangy Cole Slaw, Crisp Apple and Jumbo Chocolate Chip Cookie Afternoon Break Giant Warm Pretzels with Stadium Mustard Whole Fruit Starbucks Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee, Herbal Tea Evening Reception Mini Éclairs Cannolis Starbucks Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee, Herbal Tea Cash Bar

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FLOOR PLANS

Poster Displays: Thoroughbred Rooms 1, 2 and 3

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FLOOR PLANS

Networking, Food Functions and Pre-Functions

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FLOOR PLANS

Speaker Talks and Breakout Sessions: Thoroughbred Room 4 (TB4) Thoroughbred Rooms 5 and 6 (TB56)

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CONFERENCE SCHEDULE Thoroughbred Meeting Rooms – Third Floor 8:00 AM

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9:00 AM

Registration, Poster Set-up And Continental Breakfast – Thoroughbred Pre-Function Area

9:00 AM

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9:15AM

Welcome – Maria Labreveux (KSTC/KSEF) Opening Remarks – Mahendra Jain (KSTC/KSEF)

9:15 AM

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9:30AM

Innovation And Entrepreneurship In Kentucky’s Future – Kris Kimel (KSTC)

9:30 AM

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9:50AM

9:50 AM

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10:30 AM

Coordinating Innovative Education and Research – Brad Cowgill (CPE) The Technology Innovation Program (TIP): Solving Challenges Through Innovation – Michael Schen (NIST)

10:30 AM to 10:40 AM – BREAK 10:40 AM

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11:20 AM

11:20 AM

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12:00 PM

Opportunities Working With A Federal Lab – Cris Johnrud (Pathfinder Research Inc.) Opportunities At Oak Ridge National Lab – James Reafsnyder (Technology Partnering Solutions)

12: 00 PM to 1:30 PM – Lunch And Poster Session: ODD Numbers (Thoroughbred 1-3 and Pre-Function Area) 1:30 PM

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2:30 PM

Session 1: Protecting Your Ideas – Mandy Decker (Stites & Harbison, PLLC) and University OTT Directors Panel: Sadiq Shah (WKU), Don Keach (UK), Lauren Goralski (UoL)

1:30 PM

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2:30 PM

Session 2: Biometric Recognition, Emerging Trends In IT – Anil Jain (Michigan State University)

2:30 PM to 3:30 PM – Afternoon Break And Poster Session EVEN Numbers (Thoroughbred 1-3 and Pre-Function Area) 3.30 PM

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4:30 PM

Session 3: Researcher Entrepreneurship – Cara Baer (Butler, Snow, O'Mara, Stevens & Cannada, PLLC)

3.30 PM

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4.30 PM

Session 4: Got Jobs!! Parminder Jassall (Greater Louisville Inc.) and Start Up Companies Panel: Eric Ostertag (Transposagen Biopharmaceuticals, Inc.), Sean Higgens (Hosting.com), Charles D. Mix III (Belcan)

4:30 PM to 5:30 PM – NETWORK & Refreshments Thoroughbred Pre-Function Area 5.30 PM to 6:00 PM POSTER REMOVAL

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INVITED SPEAKER SUMMARY

The Technology Innovation Program (TIP): Solving Challenges through Innovation – Dr. Michael A. Schen, Technology Innovation Program, NIST On August 9, 2007, the President signed the America COMPETES Act which abolished the former NIST Advanced Technology Program and created the Technology Innovation Program (TIP). In December of 2007, TIP received its first appropriations that provide funds for new TIP awards in 2008.

This presentation will familiarize participants with the mission and objectives of the new TIP program, and provide an update on the launching of the new TIP program and what to expect in 2008, and outline key elements of the TIP Public Rule and evaluation criteria.

Working with Federal Laboratories – Dr. Cristy S. Johnsrud, Pathfinder Research, Inc. This presentation provides an overview of the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer, and numerous ways academic and business groups can engage the technology resources and expertise available within the more than 500 Federal laboratories across the US. From licensing technologies in order to commercially development them for US and international markets to teaming with Federal laboratory scientists on technology development projects, there are many opportunities to enhance projects and programs through the Federal laboratories. Information about CRADAs, licensing agreements, partnership agreements, and upcoming events and opportunities to meet Federal laboratory technology transfer representatives will be shared in the presentation.

Energy Efficiency and Demand Response: Low-cost Options for Powering America – James A. Reafsnyder, TPS/Technology Partnering Solutions

Today’s presentation is an overview of global energy demand, key challenges, opportunities and the role of Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s (ORNL) in solving energy technology research needs. ORNL, the Department of Energy’s largest science and energy laboratory, has developed a regional partnership program to address energy needs and foster economic growth in the Southeast.

Got Jobs!! - Parminder Jassal, Director Workforce Solutions, Greater Louisville Inc. “How do I go about finding a job after I graduate? What are employers really looking for?

Should I create a short vitae or put everything I have done in my resume?” These and many more questions asked by graduating students and post-docs reach Dr. Parminder Jassal’s office every day. Dr. Jassal and a panel of three startup companies from Kentucky will be discussing answers to these common questions and providing information on what makes an applicant a potential candidate for a job, including three traits that graduates entering the workforce need to have but sometimes overlook: professionalism, professional expertise and ethics. Most often than not, employers want all three traits to be evident on the application material and during interviews.

Protecting Intellectual Property: Brief Description – Ms. Mandy Wilson Decker, Stites & Harbison PLLC Understanding the basics of intellectual property law is essential to furthering a goal of bringing intellectual property to the market place.

Mechanisms for protecting intellectual property, including patents, trade secrets, trademarks and copyrights, as well as basic requirements for obtaining protection, will be discussed. Obstacles to obtaining protection and events that can destroy the ability to obtain intellectual property rights, will also be presented. The program will assist attendees in establishing a basic knowledge about intellectual property, subject matter that 8

INVITED SPEAKER SUMMARY

can be protected under the law, rights that intellectual property owners can obtain and processes for pursuing protection.

Biometric Recognition: A New Paradigm for Security – Dr. Anil K. Jain. Professor Michigan State University, http://biometrics.cse.msu.edu “Should Alice be allowed to enter the country? Is Bob entitled to access this database? Are we providing our service exclusively to the enrolled users? Is Charlie the real owner of this credit card?” Every day, a variety of organizations pose questions such as these about the identity of individuals. Identity theft and security breaches have become far too easy and prevalent. In the United States alone, individuals and businesses have suffered losses to the tune of $56 billion in 2005 due to identity theft. An emerging component identification technology that is being increasingly adopted is biometric recognition – automatic personal recognition based on anatomical or behavioral characteristics such as face fingerprint, voice and signature. Biometrics allows us to confirm or establish an individual’s identity based on who he is, rather than by what he possesses (e.g., an ID card) or what he remembers (e.g., a password). Biometric systems also introduce an aspect of user convenience; they alleviate the need for a user to remember multiple passwords associated with different applications or carry multiple ID cards. It is now generally accepted that biometrics can provide higher security and minimize financial fraud compared to traditional authenticators. However, a practical biometric system must meet stringent accuracy and speed requirements, satisfy resource constraints, be non-invasive and acceptable to the target population, and demonstrate robustness to potential attacks.

Starting an Innovation-Driven Technology Company – Cara Baer, Attorney, Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens & Cannada, PLLC Branching out from the traditional tenure-track professorship and starting a company to commercialize a new technological advance can be at the same time daunting and exhilarating for a member of the academic community. From building the right team to securing rights in core intellectual property, there are many steps that are vital to a start up's success yet can be foreign concepts to the career researcher. This presentation will shed some light on the initial steps to take and important questions to ask for researchers interested in starting an innovationdriven technology company.

This presentation will present an overview of biometric recognition, its advantages and limitations, emerging applications and ongoing research on sensor design, individuality, fusion and biometric system security.

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SPEAKER BIOS

Mr. Brad Cowgill – President Kentucky Council on Post Secondary Education Brad Cowgill began his appointment as interim president of the Council on Post Secondary Education on September 1, 2007. Prior to his appointment, he served as State Budget Director.

Mr. Cowgill practiced law with Stites and Harbison, PLLC, where his practice was concentrated in corporate matters and commercial litigation, with emphasis on construction-related claims and clients. Mr. Cowgill’s leadership positions in the legal profession include his service as the 1990 chairman of the Annual Meeting of Kentucky Attorneys (held in Lexington) and his appointment by the Supreme Court of Kentucky as Chairman of the Continuing Legal Education Commission. He is an active member of the American Bar Association’s Forum on the Construction Industry and has presented numerous lectures on construction-related topics.

Mr. Cowgill has also long been interested in public education, and has served on the Superintendent’s Advisory and Key Communicators Committees for the Fayette County Public Schools. In 1992-93, he co-authored ComPEL IV, a Chamber of Commerce study of Fayette County Public School administration. In 1985, he served on the steering committee of the Task Force on Excellence in the Fayette County Schools. Mr. Cowgill has been active in the leadership of the Governor’s Scholars Program, Lexington United, Better Business Bureau, Bluegrass Council of the Boy Scouts, Bluegrass Tomorrow and the Greater Lexington YMCA. In 1984, Mr. Cowgill was recognized as "Lexington’s Outstanding Young Man." He is a graduate of Leadership Kentucky (1990) and Leadership Lexington (1980).

Dr. Michael Schen – Senior Scientific Adviser, Technology Innovation Program (TIP) Dr. Michael Schen currently serves as the Senior Scientific Advisor to the Director of the Technology Innovation Program (TIP) on matters related to the scientific, technological and programmatic collaborations of TIP with stakeholders and clients. Working across TIP functions, Dr. Schen acts to integrate the program’s actions and relations within the nation’s scientific, industrial, academic and public policy framework.

Dr. Schen’s detailed technical expertise includes materials science and engineering, polymer science, nanotechnology, and electronic and photonic materials. He also has detailed experience within the electronics, photonics, microelectronics and materials industries. In total, Dr. Schen has over 30 years of combined industrial, academic, and government experience in fundamental research, technology development, corporate research and development, advanced metrology, technology planning, program management and relations, and supervision.

Dr. Schen received his Ph.D. in Polymer Science and Engineering from the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, gained his Bachelor's degree in chemistry from the Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, New York, and received his Associates in Applied Sciences from the State University of New York at Alfred.

Mr. James A. Reafsnyder – Consultant, Technology Partnering Solutions Mr. James Reafsnyder is Consultant to the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Oak Ridge National Laboratory, providing management and technical support in promotion of technology commercialization and regional economic development. The initial focus is forging of partnerships with private industry, academic institutions, state and local governments, and economic development organizations that will promote technology commercialization and economic growth in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Prior to retirement from DOE in September 2006 after a 39 year career, Mr. Reafsnyder directed the DOE’ s technology transfer program for Oak Ridge facilities; managed and directed national security, uranium enrichment and research facilities; and managed coal liquefaction R&D and pilot plants operations. He held management positions at the Feed Materials Production Center, Fernald, Ohio and Deputy Assistant Manager positions in Oak Ridge in the Energy Research Program and DOE’s Uranium Enrichment Production Complex that included 10

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operations in three states. Mr. Reafsnyder represented the DOE Oak Ridge Office on DOE Headquarters contract reform task teams and successfully led negotiation of new performance-based contracts.

While serving as Director, Office of Partnerships and Program Development, Mr. Reafsnyder supervised and directed integrated technology transfer, business development and economic development programs for the $3B/year research, manufacturing and environmental management complex managed by Oak Ridge. Significant accomplishments included growing non-DOE work from $129M in FY 1996 to $366M in FY 2006, establishing regional partnerships to foster technology transfer and economic growth in the region, and implementing cooperative initiatives resulting in third party financing of the National Transportation Research Center. During this period, he served as member of Oak Ridge Office Senior Management Board and as a senior policy advisor to DOE Headquarters in work for others and technology transfer programs.

Dr. Cris Johnrud – Founder, Pathfinder Research Inc. Dr. Cristy S. Johnsrud is Founder and Principal Consultant of Pathfinder Research, Inc., (www.PathfinderResearchInc.com) which provides research, consulting and management services in the area of technology and economic development. Pathfinder Research, Inc. serves as the Southeastern (US) Regional Office of the Federal Laboratory Consortium for Technology Transfer (www.SoutheastFLC.org) and provides a key point of contact for US firms wishing to identify technology transfer and commercialization opportunities at more than 35 Federal laboratories in the region.

Dr. Johnsrud has been involved in technology commercialization for more than 20 years. She facilitates business development, leads proposal development teams, designs and delivers training workshops on technology transfer, organizational culture and strategic planning, and conducts numerous benchmarking, best practices and evaluation studies of business incubation programs, technology transfer programs and industry-governmentacademic networks. She is currently assisting the formation of the Florida International Investment Fund, designed to commercialize internationally-developed medical device technologies for US markets. Past and current clients include the Navy, NASA, the Federal Laboratory Consortium, the University of Florida, several business incubators, and other local and national groups.

Primary publications include “Business Incubation: Emerging Trends for Profitability and Economic Development in the US, Central Asia and the Middle East" (2003) prepared for the US Department of Commerce Technology Administration and “Practical Strategies for Partnership: An Inside-Out View” (with Linda Lampl and Susan Squires) in Briody and Trotter, eds. Partnering for Organizational Performance (Rowman & Littlefield, 2008).

Dr. Johnsrud holds a Ph.D in cultural anthropology from the University of Florida where she focused her research on government-university-business linkages for large-scale commercialization of technology programs.

Ms. Mandy Wilson Decker– Patent Attorney, Stites & Harbison PLLC Mandy Wilson Decker is a patent attorney with the law firm of Stites and Harbison. Her practice focuses on patent-related aspects of life sciences intellectual property, including patent drafting, patent prosecution, and counseling clients on infringement, validity, and patentability. Contributing to her practice is a scientific background in chemistry and experience with academic and commercial research in the areas of biochemistry, molecular and cellular biology, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical sciences.

Before Joining Stites & Harbison, Ms. Decker worked as a Scientific Research Associate at the University of Kentucky in laboratories housed in the Advanced Science Technology and Commercialization Center (ASTeCC).

She also worked with a biotechnology start-up company that commercialized intellectual property including licensed university-developed technology. Ms. Decker earned her J.D., magna cum laude, graduating third in her class from the University of Kentucky College of Law. While at the College of Law, she was a member of the Kentucky Law Journal staff, and was made a member of the Order of the Coif. Ms. Decker is an active volunteer in the Louisville community, serving as a board of directors member, committee member, or volunteer for organizations such as Crane House (The Asia Institute, Inc.) and Legal Aid Society of Louisville. She is also involved in local, regional, and national organizations, including the Association of University Technology 11

SPEAKER BIOS

Managers (AUTM), the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA), the American Bar Association Intellectual Property Section, the Kentucky Bar Association, the Louisville Bar Association Intellectual Property Section and Kentucky BioAlliance.

Dr. Anil K. Jain - Professor, Michigan State University Anil Jain is a University Distinguished Professor in the Department of Computer Science at Michigan State University. His research interests include pattern recognition, computer vision and biometric authentication. He has received Guggenheim, Humboldt, Fulbright and IEEE Computer Society Technical Achievement awards. Dr. Anil Jain is a fellow of ACM, AAAS, SPIE, IAPR and IEEE and served as the Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence.

Dr. Anil Jain holds six patents in fingerprint matching and is the co-author of following books: Handbook of Biometrics (2007), Handbook of Multibiometrics (2006), Handbook of Face Recognition (2005), Handbook of Fingerprint Recognition (2003) and Algorithms for Clustering Data (1988). He is a member of the Biometrics Defense Support Team and serves on The National Academies committees on Whither Biometrics and Improvised Explosive Devices.

Ms. Cara Baer - Attorney, Butler, Snow, O’Mara, Stevens & Cannada, PLLC – Bio Cara Baer is an attorney with the Memphis, Tennessee office of Butler, Snow, O'Mara, Stevens & Cannada, PLLC in its corporate and securities practice group. Ms. Baear's practice focuses primarily on intellectual property issues including patent prosecution, copyright and trademark registration, intellectual property licensing, and general corporate practice for intellectual property-heavy transactions. The majority of Ms. Baer's time is spent handling intellectual property and corporate issues with universities, university professors, and companies in their first few years of operation. Many of Ms. Baer's clients are successful start ups which originated from technology developed by professors and licensed out of universities. She is admitted to both the Tennessee and patent bars.

Ms. Baer may be reached by email at cara.baer@butlersnow.com or by phone at 901-680-7328.

Dr. Parminder K. Jassal- Director Workforce Solutions, Greater Louisville Inc. Dr. Parminder Jassal has extensive background in the strategic architecture and practical implementation of innovative sectoral workforce initiatives. For the past several years, Dr. Jassal has served as the Director of Workforce Solutions for Greater Louisville Inc. recently recognized by the American Chamber of Commerce Executives as the top chamber in America for 2007. This position has provided her the opportunity to design and implement regional development strategies that envelop a bi-state region consisting of Southern Indiana and North Central Kentucky. In addition, she serves as the liaison between each of the Greater Louisville clusterbased business networks and the regional postsecondary education providers, employing an innovative process that resulted in the creation of the HIRE Education Forum.

Dr. Jassal has spent the vast majority of her career in the private sector with Fortune 100 companies and startups representing firms such as Ford Motor Company, Atlantic Richfield Oil Company, International Network Services, Lucent Technologies and Appriss. In previous positions, she successfully led an international fiber optical professional services support team and the strategic partnership initiatives. An entrepreneurial technologist and strategic planner and implementer for the past ten years, Dr. Jassal has enjoyed a prosperous and rewarding career in cutting-edge technology and research and launch of new product and program development.

Dr. Jassal holds a Ph.D. from the Department of Education at the University of Louisville. Her research focuses on the linkages between higher education and economic development.

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ENVIRONMENTAL AND ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES Atwood, David

Gas Phase Phosphate Ester Binding

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Ernest, Andrew

Improving Local Water Supply In Rural Communities Via A Sensor Network With The Aid Of A RuleBased Expert System In A GIS Platform

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A Novel Concept Of Converting Carbon Dioxide Gas Into Useful Products

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Rajaputra, Suresh

Nanostructured Tin Oxide And Titanium Oxide For Low Temperature Gas Sensor Applications

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Tao, Daniel

Next-Generation Triboelectrostatic Separator For Dry Efficient Separation Of Particles

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Webb, Cathleen

A Novel Pervious Cement Reaction Barrier (PCRB) In Situ Arsenic-Remediation System

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Zhang, Robin

Detecting And Analyzing The Spatial Distribution Of An Invasive Plant, Lonicera Japonica, Using Remote Sensing And GIS

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Alan, Seyed Mehdi

Boundary Layer Manipulation Using Actively Controlled Surfaces

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Alvarez, Daniel

Control Of Beef Emulsion Stability Using Visible Light Backscatter And Color

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Parekh, B.K.

BIOSCIENCES Anderson, Kimberly

Synthesis And Characterization Of Hydrogel Nanocomposites For Cancer Therapeutics

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Anderson, Kimberly

A Cell-Based Biosensor For Early Screening Of Cancer

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Anderson, Kimberly

IGERT - Building Leadership Through A Program On Engineered Bioactive Interfaces And Devices

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The Role Of TFII-I In Development And Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation

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Bayarsaihan Dashzeveg

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Bradley, Luke

A Novel Approach For The Exploration And Design Of Neuronal Protein Recognition And Specificity

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Castillo, Manuel

Syneresis Sensor Technology For Curd Moisture Content Control In Cheese Making

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Chanda, Bidisha

The Role Of Glycerol Metabolism In The ArabidopsisColletotrichum Higginsianum Interaction

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Dugatkin, Lee

The Evolution Of Intelligence In A Model Invertebrate Species

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Davies, Maelor

KTRDC Research - Facilitating The Development Of Technology-Driven New Crop Opportunities For Kentucky Agriculture

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Durtsche, Richard D.

Development Of A MicroElectrode And Perfusion System For Testing Stomach Acid Activity In Developing Vertebrates

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FathGoodin, Angelika

The Campoletis Sonorensis Ichnovirus Vankyrin Protein Pvank-1 Inhibits Apoptosis In Insect Sf9 Cells

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Frolenkov, Gregory

Nanoscale Imaging Of The Surface Of A Living Cell

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Fukushige, Hirotada

Commercialization Of Green Note Production Technology

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Gao, QingMing

Molecular, Genetic And Biochemical Characterization Of Oleic Acid-Regulated Defense Signaling In Plants

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Gunjan, Samir

“Unnatural Selection" Generates Alcohol-Resistant Tobacco Plants With Potential Commercial Value.

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Haun, Andrew

Human Spatial Vision In 1/f Noise

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Hildebrand, David

Cyclopropane Fatty Acid Accumulation In Plant Oil

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Hilgarth, Roland

Enhanced Recombinant Protein Production By ParaTechs' Vankyrin-Enhanced Baculovirus Expression Technology

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Holley, Bob

Native Plants Related To St. John's Wort Contain Natural Products w/Potentially Valuable Pharmacological Activity

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Houtz, Robert

Isolation And Identification Of Plant-Specific Peptide Deformylase Inhibitors From Soil - Microorganisms For Use As Broad-Spectrum herbicides And Selectable Markers

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Jeong, RaeDong

Molecular And Genetic Characterization Of Hypersensitive Response And Resistance To Turnip Crinkle Virus In Arabidopsis

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Klotz, Martin G.

Transcription Of Nitrification Genes By The Methane-Oxidizing Bacterium, Methylococcus Capsulatus Strain Bath

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Kulshrestha, Manish

Native Plants Contain Neuroprotective Compounds With Unusual Pharmacological Activity At NMDA And Nicotinic Receptors

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Kurepa, Jasmina

Misfolded Proteins And Stress Resistance In Plants

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Lawless, Patrick

Native Freshwater Aquatic Plants As A Source Of Tissue-Protective Anti-Oxidants

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Li, Baochun

Optimizing The Anti-Cancer Potential Of The Madagascar Periwinkle Using Natural Product Genomics Technology

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Littleton, John

Novel NMDA Receptor Modulator Based On Agmatine Is Positive In An Entire Alcoholism AntiRelapse Screening Hierarchy

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Lucas, Shawn

Isolation And Identification Of Plant-Specific Peptide Deformylase Inhibitors From Soil

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Monks, Noel

Using Transgenic Plant CellBased Screens For Activity At Estrogen Receptors In Extracts From Native Plants

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Murphy, Paul

Development Of An Assay System For The Measurement Of Beta-Secretase

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Patel, Dhavel

Theophylline Molecularly Imprinted Polymer: Effect of Formulation Variables On Its Binding To Theophylline

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Pathak, Yashwant

Exploring Collaborations

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Ratajczak, Janina

An In Vivo Evidence That The CD45negative Adult MarrowDerived CXCR4+ SSEA-1+ OCT4+ Very Small Embryonic-Like (VSEL) Stem Cells May Differentiate Into CD45positive Long Term Repopulating Hematopoietic Stem Cells

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Richter, Natali

Targeting Estrogens To Bone

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Rogers, Trent

Screening For Novel Insecticidal Activity In Native Plant Species

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Rogers, Trent

Novel Aryliminoguanidines And Acrylonitriles For NMDA Receptor Modulation Detected By High Throughput Molecular Screenin.

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Rogers, Trent

Novel Iminoguanidines Modulate NMDA Receptor Function In CellBased Screens: Influence of Polyamines A Simple Array Platform For MicroRNA Analysis And Its Application

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Tran, Hieu

Pharmacy Professionals’ Status In Kentucky

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Tseng, Michael

Impact Of Intracellular ATP Delivery On Cytoarchitecture Of Rabbit Skin Wounds

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Voor, Michael

Alternative Bone Graft Solutions

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Wan, Rong

Up-Regulation Of Pro And AntiInflammatory Cytokines Expression During Intracellular Energy Delivery For Wound Care

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Warner, Dennis

PRDM16 - A Novel Zinc Finger Protein Linked To Palatal Clefting

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Yang, Dong Sheng

Probing Metal Binding To DNA And RNA Nucleobases With High-Resolution Photoelectron Spectroscopy

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Yokel, Robert

An In-Line Filter To Remove Aluminum From Intravenous Feeding Solutions

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Zhan, Chang-Guo

Subtype-Selective Agonists Binding With Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors

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Zhu, Hongyan

Fungal Symbiosis In Rice Requires An Ortholog Of Legume Common Symbiosis Gene Encoding A Ca2/CalmodulinDependent Protein Kinase

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Tang, Xiaoqing

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HUMAN HEALTH AND DEVELOPMENT Boman, Marty

Video Games For Teaching Social Skills To Children With Autism

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Bruce, Eugene

Sample Entropy Tracks Changes in EEG Signal Structure With Sleep State

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Ehringer, William

Optimizing High Energy Phosphate Delivery For Clinical Applications

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Gettleman, Lawrence

Multicenter Trial Of Chlorinated Polyethylene Elastomer For Maxillofacial Prosthetics

Lodder, Robert A.

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Bryson, Lindsey

Dynamic, Distributed Real-Time System For Geosystems Health Monitoring

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Fei, Zongming

Multimedia Streaming Using Overlay Networks

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Hu, Patrick

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Wang, Yin

A Sixth Order Finite Difference Computation With Multigrid Method And Extrapolation for 2D Poisson Equation

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Yang, Jianjun

Bipartite Graph Based Dynamic Spectrum Allocation For Wireless Mesh Networks

74

Surreptitious Sensing Of Blood Alcohol Content: Remote NearInfrared Spectroscopic (NIRS) Imaging And Laser Speech Detection

61

Han, Dianwei

The Relationship Between The Matrix Features And The Performance Of Preconditioned Iterative Solvers

75

Mohan, Royce

Chemical Genetics Application Of AG-001 In Gliosis

62

Mukhopadh yay, Partha

Epigenetics And Fetal Alcohol Syndrome

63

Palandoken, Hasan

Progress Towards Cariporide Analogs For Sodium-Proton Exchange Inhibition

Sahi, Shivendra

MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ADVANCE MANUFACTURING Laser Spectroscopic Characterization Of Transition Metal-Aromatic Compounds

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Yang, Dong Sheng

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Menguc, M. Pinar

Thermal Transport Induced By Electron-Beam Heating At Nanoscale

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Development Of A Plant Based Antiviral Compound For Herpes Simplex Virus

Toborek, Michal

Nanoparticle-Induced Dysfunction Of Brain Endothelial Cells And Disruption Of The Blood-Brain Barrier

Balk, Thomas John

Microstructure-Property Relations In Osmium-Ruthenium Coatings For Porous Tungsten Dispenser Cathodes

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Chen, Rong

ATP Delivery Enhanced Skin Wound Healing In Diabetic Animals Intracellular Delivery Of ATP Enhanced Healing Process In Full-Thickness Skin Wounds In Diabetic Animals

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Impression Creep Of A Sn60Pb40 Alloy: The Effect Of Electric Current

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Wang, Jianpu

Dang, Hongmei

Nanoindentation Of Zinc Sulfide

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Laser Spectroscopy Of Ultra Cold Molecular Ions

81

Generalized Diffusion SimulationBased Tractography For Mapping Human Brain

Gharaibeh, Mohammed Gibson, Heather

Graphene Nanoelectronics

82

Hastings, J. Todd

Spatial-Phase Locked ElectronBeam Lithography For Nanomanufacturing

83

Hilt, J. Zach

Novel Method For Synthesis And Integration Of Intelligent Polymer Networks With X,Y And Z Spatial Control At The MicroAnd Nanoscale

84

Zhuang, Qi

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND COMMUNICATIONS Antony, Solomon

Patterns For data modeling

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PRESENTER

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Jawahir, I.S.

Establishing The Influence Of Drill Materials, Drill Geometry And Coatings On Drill-Wear And Drilling Performance For Sustainable Dry Drilling On Mars

85

Kalika, Douglass

Novel Polymeric Membrane Materials For The Removal Of Carbon Dioxide From Gas Mixtures

86

Li, Yan

Indentation Induced Whisker Growth On An Electroplated Tin Film

87

McNamara, Shamus

Parallel Optical Direct Write Lithography for MEMS Applications

88

Menon, Madhu

Graphene Nanoelectronics

89

Puleo, David

Improved Machinning Of MetalOn-Metal Hip Implants

90

Rankin, Stephen

Interfacially Controlled Incorporation Of Titanium Within Ordered Mesoporous Silica

91

Sekulic, P., Dusan

Metallic And Carbon Foam Bonding

92

Singh, Vijay

Commercialization Of High Quality Nanoporous Alumina Templates For Nanoscale Devices And Systems

93

Wilson, Stacy

Void Detection Robot

94

Yang, Fuqian

Precipitation, Growth And Mechanical Behavior of HA

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16

POSTER ABSTRACTS ENVIRONMENTAL AND ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES 1. Gas Phase Phosphate Ester Binding Atwood, David*, Partha Jana, Christopher Preece, Nathan Webb; University of Kentucky It is currently difficult or expensive to cleave phosphate ester bonds in nerve agents or plasticizers, although it has been discovered recently

by David Atwood at the University of Kentucky that readily available, easily handled, inorganic boron and aluminum reagents can efficiently cleave the phosphate ester bonds in trialkyl phosphates and nerve agents in organic solvents. This work has been patented by UK. These newly discovered reagents are chelated five-coordinate aluminum bromides (known generally as salen aluminum bromides, or abbreviated “SAB”). The goal of the KSEF-funded work is to demonstrate that the SAB class of reagents can be used to deactivate gaseous phosphate esters to produce solid, non-toxic, byproducts. This will be achieved by conducting research to show how the SAB reagents can be bound in an air filter and subsequently used in a gas mask for nerve agent protection or in a household air filter to clean the air of plasticizers. The binding of actual nerve agents and pesticides has been demonstrated recently in a collaboration with the Army’s Aberdeen Proving Ground (MD) laboratory.

Keywords: Nerve agent, pesticide, plasticizer, gas, filter 2. Improving Local Water Supply In Rural Communities Via A Sensor Network With The Aid Of A Rule-Based Expert System In A GIS Platform Ernest, Andrew*, Karla Andrew; Center for Water Resource Studies Abstract: __ Keywords: __ 3. A Novel Concept Of Converting Carbon Dioxide Gas Into Useful Products Parekh, B.K.*; Center for Applied Energy Research, University of Kentucky Increases in fossil fuel use in the coming decades will result in significant increases in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, with the potential for resulting changes in the global climate. Of all the processes being examined sequestration of CO2 in the ocean or in deep coal mines appears to be an attractive route. However, both the techniques have some

serious drawbacks that could include re-release of CO2 back into the atmosphere. The concept being tested in this project offers a novel approach of converting CO2 into a useful by-product by combusting Mg metal in the CO2 atmosphere. The by-products of the process will be magnesium oxide (MgO) and carbon (C). The MgO can be recycled to generate Mg metal and carbon depending on the particle size and purity, can be used in various applications. The project consists of three tasks. In task one, laboratory studies were performed and in the task two a detailed evaluation of the concept with repect to various criteria is being conducted. In task three a preliminary techno-economic study of the developed process will be conducted and a flow sheet of the process will be developed.

Keywords: Magnesium,carbon, Mg 4. Nanostructured Tin Oxide And Titanium Oxide For Low Temperature Gas Sensor Applications Piao Liu, Satish Kumar Kandala, Sovannary Phok, Suresh Rajaputra*, Vijay Singh; Center for Nanoscale Scinece and Engineering (CeNSE), Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Kentucky Nanostructured Tin oxide and Titanium dioxide films have been reported to be highly sensitive to reducing agents like Hydrogen and Ammonia. Our work is focused on the evaluation of nanostructured architectures towards improving the gas sensing properties of these films at low temperatures, and preferably at room temperature. So far we have been successful in observing a 18% sensor response in nanostructured tin oxide based resistive sensors at 100 C. Our nanostructred titaina based sensors have shown a very good response (46%) to 100 ppm ammonia at room temperature. We have also been able to fabricate Titanium Oxide nanotube arrays by anodization. Preliminary sensor results show a 21% response to 100 ppm of ammonia at room temperature.

Keywords: Nanoporous, Titania, Tin Oxide, Ammonia Sensing 5. Next-Generation Triboelectrostatic Separator For Dry Efficient Separation Of Particles Tao, Daniel*, Maoming Fan, Kelvin Jiang, Department of Mining Engineering; Bruce Boggs, University of Kentucky; Headwater Resources Inc. More than 80 million metric tons of fly ash is produced annually in the U.S. as coal combustion 17

POSTER ABSTRACTS by-product. Fly ash can be converted to value-added products if unburned carbon is reduced to less than 2.5%. However, most of fly ash is currently landfilled as waste due to lack of efficient purification technologies to separate unburned carbon from fly ash. A rotary triboelectrostatic separator with unique features for fine particle purification has been developed at the University of Kentucky. Several fly ash samples have been used in the study to understand the effects of major process parameters on the separation performance. The results show that compared to existing triboelectrostatic separators, the rotary triboelectrostatic separator has significant advantages in particle charging efficiency, solids throughput, separation efficiency, applicable particle size range. A pilot scale system of the rotary triboelectrostatic separator has been designed and installed and the system performance evaluation is being performed.

Keywords: Electrostatic separation, fine particle, fly ash, particle charging, 6. A Novel Pervious Cement Reaction Barrier (PCRB) In Situ Arsenic-Remediation System Webb, Cathleen*; Western KY University Arsenic contamination of surface water and ground water from superfund sites is of great concern because of potential toxic effects of arsenic. Current remediation technologies for isolated or remote superfund sites are expensive and are typically designed for large-scale sites. Sites that are remote (mining sites and other rural areas) often face unique challenges. Similarly, treatment options for urban sites typically involves an invasive visible footprint. We are developing a passive treatment in situ PCRB remediation technology that will significantly concentrate the arsenic onto the PCRB. Treatment of large quantities of water with arsenic above drinking water standards with a PCRB should produce a relatively small and compact amount of solid waste material with adsorbed arsenic. Arsenic retention by a PCRB appears to be an effective process that offers great potential for source reduction. Because of the ready availability of limestone, its use for arsenic remediation would be relatively inexpensive. The technology could be readily adapted to small rural water supply systems as well as private, domestic, and stock wells, helping operators of these systems to meet anticipated new rules. Additional benefits include the potential for low-cost disposal of the waste product in a stable form. Direct economic benefits to the Commonwealth of Kentucky will be seen through

increased demand for limestone as a result of this innovative process. We anticipate commercial application of the technology could be available within two years. This project will use batch, column, and adsorption experiments to evaluate and model the adsorptive capacity of a PCRB for arsenic uptake as a function of the level of arsenic to be remediated as well as the surface area and capacity of the PCRB. The optimum conditions for arsenic adsorption and retention in order to reduce arsenic levels below drinking water standards at flow rates typical of rural point-source users will be determined by the results of the laboratory studies.

Keywords: Arsenic Remediation Technologies 7. Detecting And Analyzing The Spatial Distribution Of An Invasive Plant, Lonicera Japonica, Using Remote Sensing And GIS Zhang, Robin*, Geosceiences; Kate He; Biological Sciences, Murray State University The invasion of alien plants has serious ecological and economic consequences. Geographic factors including human disturbances and habitat characteristics such as land cover, terrain, water and soils play an important role in plant invasion.

However, the spatial distribution of invasive plants is poorly documented, the path of dissemination is sketchy and the mechanism of spatial dispersal is mostly unclear. Recent advancements in remote sensing, geographic information systems (GIS) and Global Positioning Systems (GPS) have made available a suite of tools for characterizing the geography of plant invasion. This project will examine and compare the spatial distribution of a successful invasive plant, Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica), in two watersheds of similar size but ecologically distinct in Western Kentucky (Ledbetter Creek) and Western Tennessee (Panther Creek). The potential of high resolution Quickbird satellite images will be evaluated for the detection and mapping of the invasive plant, with the assistant of GPS survey in the field. A spatial regression model will be developed in a GIS to describe the contribution of factors (such as roads, trails, slope, aspect, soils and distance to water) to the current distribution of the invader and to predict areas at risk to invasion. This project will provide the first geographic characterization of Japanese honeysuckle in the region, and lead to future interdisciplinary research between geosciences and biological sciences.

Keywords: Remote sensing, GIS, invasive plant, Japanese honeysuckle 18

POSTER ABSTRACTS 8. Boundary Layer Manipulation Using Actively Controlled Surfaces Alan, Seyed Mehdi*, S.K., Parimi, J., Sheng, and T. M. Seigler; Dept. Mechanical Engineering, University of Kentucky Flow control is of long-standing interest for various engineering applications. In this work, we explore several bio-inspired designs with the aim of developing an actively controlled bio-mimetic surface for drag manipulation. For example, the mucus layer of the human pulmonary inner lining, the secretion layer beneath snails, and the mucus layer covering fish skins are all conjectured to be beneficial in enhancing near wall mass/momentum transport and in manipulating near wall drag. It is our goal to create such an engineering surface to mimic the near wall transport properties of these biological systems with a micro-actuated traveling wave active surface. We present progress and preliminary results on both design of the actuating surface and understanding of interactions between it and the near wall flow. Kernel experiments on fluid-surface interaction are conducted in an open-loop wind tunnel within a tripped turbulent boundary layer. A moving belt with micro-fabricated structures emulating crests and troughs of a wave is used to generate spanwise movement and later emulates the traveling wave. PIV measurements for the control case (no traveling wave) are conducted at two stations located at 15” and 26” from leading edge of wind tunnel with Rex=700,000 and 900,000 respectively. On-going analysis will provide mean and fluctuating velocity, turbulent kinetic energy, and turbulent stress distributions. The design of actuating surface and numerical simulation are presented as well.

Keywords: PIV, Artificial Mucus, Turbulance BIOSCIENCES 9. Control Of Beef Emulsion Stability Using Visible Light Backscatter And Color Álvarez, Daniel*, Castillo, M., Payne, F. A., Xiong. Y. L.; Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, Animal and Food Sciences, University of Kentucky The emulsification process for manufacture of finely comminuted meat products such as frankfurters and bolognas requires improved process control. An excess of cooking losses during manufacturing is an evident indicator of lack of emulsion stability (i.e., a stable emulsion suffers minimal cooking losses). An

on-line optical backscatter sensor technology was proposed for determining the optimum chopping end-point that would yield minimal exudation during the cooking process. An experiment was carried out in triplicate to evaluate the effect of distance between optical fibers (2, 2.5 and 3 mm), fat/lean ratio (0.075, 0.25, and 0.33) and chopping times (2, 5 and 8 min) on light backscatter properties of beef meat emulsions. The normalized intensity and the extinction of the light backscatter signal were measured within a wavelength range from 450 to 700 nm. CIELAB color and cooking losses were also studied in this experiment. The results show that the intensity of the light backscatter signal was significantly correlated with distances between optical fibers, chopping time, fat/lean ratio, lightness, and cooking losses. The profile of the normalized light backscatter signal and the number of its local maxima and minima were less consistent as chopping time increased from 2 to 8 min. Cooking losses increased with increasing fat/lean ratio and under- or over-chopping. Lightness was observed to increase with chopping time and higher fat/lean ratios. The results suggest that there is an optimum chopping time that maximizes yield. Therefore, light extinction shows promise for the development of an optical sensor for the determination of optimum chopping end-point.

Keywords: Beef meat, Chopping process, Fat/lean ratio, Emulsification, Light backscatter, Sensor technology, Fiber optic, Monitoring.

10. Synthesis And Characterization Of Hydrogel Nanocomposites For Cancer Therapeutics Anderson, Kimberly*, Zachary Hilt, Samantha Meenach; Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky Although polymer composites have been an area of research for many years, it is only recently that nanocomposites have garnered much attention due to the unique properties that the nanoscale structures can provide. For example, nanomaterials have been shown to exhibit unique mechanical (e.g., carbon nanotubes), optical (e.g., gold colloids), and magnetic (e.g., superparamagnetic particles) properties, and these properties can be exploited in composite systems. Examples of these composite systems include hydrogels combined with nanoscale systems which can serve as novel biomaterials with enhanced properties. In particular, environmentally responsive hydrogels that have swelling states dependent on external stimuli (e.g., pH and temperature) can be integrated with various 19

POSTER ABSTRACTS nanomaterials to create intelligent composite system that can be utilized in a wide variety of biomedical applications such as cancer therapeutics. In this work, the nanocomposites studied involved a temperature-responsive, poly(Nisopropylacrylamide)-based system and a stealth, poly(ethylene glycol)-based systems, both with and without iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles incorporated into the hydrogel matrices. The addition of iron oxide nanoparticles allows for the nanocomposites to be heated upon exposure to an alternating magnetic field. Heating analysis of the gels was completed to show the heating capability of the gels and biocompatibility analysis performed on the nanocomposites showed that they can be safely used in implant applications. Swelling and heating capabilities along with biocompatibility of these systems make them ideal for use in combined hyperthermia treatment and chemotherapy of cancer.

Keywords: Hydrogels, Nanoparticles, Hyperthermia, Drug Delivery 11. A Cell-Based Biosensor For Early Screening Of Cancer Anderson, Kimberly*; Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky Every year more than 500, 000 deaths are caused by cancer in the United States. Early detection of cancer and positive response of patients to therapy are keys to successful treatment of the disease. A biological characteristic common to most malignant cancers is angiogenesis and it is now recognized as a promising target for therapy and as a potential prognostic indicator of cancer. One of the key steps in angiogenesis is the increase in vascular permeability caused by growth factors. Researchers have shown that higher concentrations of growth factors are observed in the blood of cancer patients than that in healthy individuals. Moreover, these growth factors are also known to induce increased vascular permeability. A cell based biosensor consisting of human umbilical vein endothelial cells having the ability to detect small quantities of permeability modifying agents, has been developed in our laboratory. The responses obtained upon exposing the biosensor to the above mentioned growth factors indicated the capability of the sensor to act as an alternate assay for measuring angiogenesis. Increased sensor response due the synergistic effects of these growth factors further demonstrates the ability of the sensor to act as a screening tool at the early stages of cancer when the individual concentrations of these growth factors

are not as high. The biosensor was tested by exposing the sensor to the serum of healthy individuals and cancer patients. The results showed that the sensor can distinguish between healthy individuals and cancer patients and the results correlate with the stages of cancer.

Keywords: Growth Factors, Endothelial Cells, Angiogenesis 12. IGERT - Building Leadership Through A Program On Engineered Bioactive Interfaces And Devices Anderson, Kimberly*, Bruce Hinds; Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky This Integrative Graduate Education Research Training (IGERT) is a National Science Foundation sponsored program that addresses the need for a coherent interdisciplinary graduate education and research training program on Engineered Bioactive Interfaces and Devices. Engineered Bioactive Interfaces and Devices focuses on the novel design of architectures that interact with biological systems and promote a desired response. These advanced architectures have numerous applications ranging from tissue engineering to drug delivery and successful development of these systems will depend on expertise not only in developing novel synthetic architectures through nanotechnology, self-assembly and hybrid systems but also on the interactions of these interfaces with biological systems such as cells and proteins. Nearly all materials used today in biological applications are those that were originally designed for nonbiological applications without any consideration for the interactions between the biological system and the synthetic interface. The need for more advanced bioactive interfaces and for specialty applications has grown and successful development of these architectures will require the integration of the biological sciences and engineering disciplines. This IGERT program addresses this need by educating and training the next generation of engineering and scientists working in this area. The student participants enhance their backgrounds in their primary disciplines and obtain a thorough, crossdisciplinary education at the interface of biological sciences and engineering using state-of–the-art instrumentation and methodologies. Through outreach and other activities, this IGERT program will have far-reaching impact. The multidisciplinary research along with other IGERT activities will be the focus of this presentation.

Keywords: Biointerfaces, Training grant, Cells, Proteins, Multidisciplinary 20

POSTER ABSTRACTS

13. The Role Of TFII-I In Development And Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation Bayarsaihan, Dashzeveg*; University of Louisville, Birth Defects Center GTF2IRD1 and GTF2I paralogs are closely linked at the 7q11.23 region hemizygously deleted in Williams syndrome, a complex, multisystemic neurodevelopmental disorder. Both paralogs encode the TFII-I family transcription factors BEN and TFII-I that play key regulatory roles in diverse chromatinmediated biological processes, such as gene activation, and cell-cycle regulation. Despite these implications, very little is known about the specialized contributions of individual TFII-I factors in the tissue-specific pathways required for proper embryonic development. In the current work we showed that the Gtf2ird1 or Gtf2i loss of function results in multiple phenotypic manifestations including embryonic lethality, brain hemorrhage, vasculogenic, craniofacial and neural tube defects. A subset of Gtf2ird1+/- and Gtf2i+/- heterozygotes displayed retarded growth, kyphosis, craniofacial and pigmentation defects therefore showing that haploinsufficiency of TFII-I proteins causes various developmental anomalies. Embryonic expression microarray analysis implicated a number of genes for transcriptional regulation, chromatin remodeling, signaling and cell cycle as potential downstream targets. Gtf2ird1 inactivation in mouse embryonic stem (mES) cells results in Nodal activation, while Gtf2i knockdown shows decrease in the expression at the same time interval. We found several TFII-I binding consensus sites within Nodal and Gata4 regulatory regions. ChIP demonstrated that TFII-I proteins are recruited to these regions. The collected evidence indicates that TFII-I transcription factors are indispensable in embryonic development due to modulation of a set of genes critical in tissue remodeling and embryonic stem cell differentiation.

Keywords: TFII-I, Williams syndrome, epigenetic, embryonic, stem cells 14. A Novel Approach For The Exploration And Design Of Neuronal Protein Recognition And Specificity Bradley, Luke* Charlotte Randle; Departments of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, University of Kentucky This research utilizes approaches at the interface of chemistry, biochemistry, and molecular biology to advance our understanding of neuroprotein interaction networks. We employ protein design and

molecular screening strategies to productively generate new molecules with altered biological activities. Detailed biochemical and biophysical characterization of these molecules validate this approach and contribute towards understanding the molecular basis of the native protein’s function. In addition, these novel molecules will serve as translational platforms for the development of various medical, biotechnical, and therapeutic applications. This work is supported by KSEF [KSEF07-RDE-010].

Keywords: recognition, binding, specificity, neuroprotein, approaches 15. Syneresis Sensor Technology For Curd Moisture Content Control In Cheese Making Castillo, Manuel* Payne, F.A., Mençüc, M.P.; Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, University of Kentucky The cheese making industry is a very important segment of the US agriculture and produces approximately 30% of world cheese production.

Syneresis is a major process in cheese making and involves the dewatering of curd particles. The flow of whey must be controlled to obtain the desired cheese moisture content. Better curd moisture control is needed to decrease the production of under-grade cheese and improve cheese quality. A promising optical sensor technology has been developed that predicts curd moisture content during syneresis with a SEP of 1.72% over a range 50-90%. This new technology consists of a unique sensor that measures light backscatter at a wavelength of 980 nm and yields a response which, with data processing, yields the kinetics of syneresis, and regression models which predict cutting time, whey fat losses, cheese yield and curd moisture content as a function of time. This technology offers the potential for improved process control for both high and low moisture cheese manufacture. Two patent applications have been filled at the US patent office on that technology. A spin-off from this research program was the development of a laboratory milk-clotting tester that offers numerous different practical applications for the dairy industry Keywords: Syneresis, curd, moisture, sensor, NIR, control 16. The Role Of Glycerol Metabolism In The Arabidopsis- Colletotrichum Higginsianum Interaction Chanda, Bidisha*, Srivathsa C. Venugopal, Saurabh Kulshrestha, Bruce Downie, Aardra Kachroo, Lisa 21

POSTER ABSTRACTS Vaillancourt, Pradeep Kachroo; Department of Plant Pathology, University of Kentucky Previously, we have shown that a balance between glycerol-3-phosphate (G3P) and oleic acid levels is critical for defense signaling in Arabidopsis. We are now testing the hypothesis that changes in levels of glycerol, and its products, resulting from pathogen metabolic activity represents a novel signal triggering defense responses in Arabidopsis. Our approach has been to manipulate glycerol metabolic genes in Arabidopsis and in Colletotrichum higginsianum, cause of crucifer anthracnose.

Inoculation with C. higginsianum increases host G3P and concomitantly declines glycerol levels, suggesting a role for these metabolites in the hostpathogen interaction. To further elucidate the role of glycerol-metabolism in host defense and pathogenesis, we evaluated the response of mutants affected in various steps of glycerol metabolism. In addition, a strain of C. higginsianum with a knockout mutation in the G3P dehydrogenase gene (g3pdh) was produced. The g3pdh KO strain grew better when the medium was supplemented with glycerol, and the growth rate increased with increasing glycerol concentrations. The mutant strain accumulated reduced amounts of glycerol, and showed a reduction in appressorial turgor.

Interestingly, while the g3pdh KO was less aggressive on wild type Arabidopsis, its infectivity was restored on various Arabidopsis mutants impaired in glycerol metabolism. Our results support a role for glycerol and G3P in the interaction between Arabidopsis and C. higginsianum.

Keywords: Plant defense, glycerol, signaling, fungus 17. The Evolution Of Intelligence In A Model Invertebrate Species Dugatkin, Lee Alan*, David Mehl; Department of Biology, University of Louisville Most current models of intelligence assume that it evolved primarily in response to evolutionary pressures associated with living in complex social environments. The animals most often associated with intelligence (apes, dolphins, parrots, humans) are cared for by at least one generation of parents, benefit from social exposure to others, and have life spans that exceed decades, allowing individuals time to develop complex learning skills. Yet these species are difficult to use in controlled experiments. Ideally, evolutionary biologists would like to examine intelligence in a species that is known to display complex behavior, and is amenable to controlled experimentation -- octopuses may be just such

creatures. Octopuses are an even more appealing system for studying the evolution of intelligence because their life histories are very different from those of vertebrates. Hatched in vast numbers, most octopuses spend their early life drifting with the current, and only 1/100,000 achieve sexual maturity.

This allows no opportunity for imitation during development. Yet octopuses have demonstrated remarkable learning abilities with respect to such tasks as solving complicated puzzles and mazes. We are about to begin a series of controlled experiments whose primary is to determine whether octopuses can learn via imitation. Ruling out or confirmation of imitation in an octopus system could change the way scientists think about the evolution of cognition.

If imitation evolved in parallel between vertebrates and invertebrates -- groups whose genomes diverged hundreds of millions of years ago--many long-held theories about our own intelligence may need to be reevaluated.

Keywords: intelligence, evolution, cognition, imitation 18. KTRDC Research - Facilitating The Development Of Technology-Driven New Crop Opportunities For Kentucky Agriculture Davies, Maelor*, Richard Mundell, Orlando Chambers; Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center, University of Kentucky The Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center (KTRDC) conducts and supports unique applied research that examines new agricultural crop opportunities based on tobacco and other plants.

The Center’s program effectively provides the oftenmissing link between plant science and commercial opportunities, thereby facilitating economic development from new technologies in crop agriculture. One aspect of KTRDC research explores and encourages the use of tobacco in Kentucky as a manufacturing system for commercially useful proteins and plant-made pharmaceuticals. The Center has developed unique tobacco types which are optimized for these new applications, and KTRDC also provides expert assistance with federal regulatory aspects of field-based production.

Kentucky is a world leader in the development of this novel industry with several companies initiating pilot-scale production in the state. KTRDC is also developing and promoting new technologies which expand the discovery and use of non-protein substances which are made naturally by plants, collectively referred to as ‘plant natural products.'

Many plant natural products are familiar as flavors and fragrances, medicinals, and natural insecticides.

22

POSTER ABSTRACTS However, new developments in drug discovery and plant genomics now offer the potential to generate entirely new commercial opportunities for plant natural products, with resulting new crop and market opportunities for Kentucky growers. The Center specializes in developing agricultural production for companies and researchers who are commercializing these new natural plant products.

Keywords: plant-made pharmaceuticals, plant natural products, biotechnology 19. Development Of A Micro-Electrode And Perfusion System For Testing Stomach Acid Activity In Developing Vertebrates Durtsche, Richard D.* Kelly Stuard, Suzanne Summe, Brittany Garera; Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Kentucky University Understanding the developmental role of gastric activity and its control are important to find potential solutions to problems such as acid reflux. This project investigates methods and technologies to detection and control acid production by stomach cells of frog larvae (tadpoles), as a model of the developing juvenile vertebrate digestive system. The goal is to develop technologies for identifying and measuring changes in gastric acid (H+ ion) production in the mucosal lining (from parietal cell membranes) of the stomach. These technologies incorporate measuring acid concentrations in fresh tissue at the cellular level with pH sensitive microelectrodes that we design and fabricate. In addition, we are designing and developing a dual fluid tissueholding chamber to test the effect of substances (foods, liquids, drugs) on stomach tissue while pH levels are recorded with micro-electrodes. Design modification is also underway to construct microelectrodes that also function in microperfusion, so that stomach cells can be bathed with a substance and their subsequent acid production response recorded. This system will allow us to test the effect of substances that activate or deactivate stomach acid production, such as the antacid drug esomeprazole (e.g., Nexium速) that inhibits the proton (H+ ion) pump stomach activity in humans.

Concurrently, we are developing protocols to stain identify the acid producing cells of the stomach with molecular techniques called in-situ hybridization using RNA markers.

Keywords: pH microelectrodes, perfusion system, stomach acid detection, tadpoles 20. The Campoletis Sonorensis Ichnovirus Vankyrin Protein P-vank-1 Inhibits Apoptosis In Insect Sf9 Cells

Fath-Goodin, Angelika*(1,2), Jeremy A. Kroemer (2), Krista N. Whalen (1,2), Bruce A. Webb (1,2); 1University of Kentucky, Department of Entomology, 2ParaTechs Corp. and University of Kentucky Polydnaviruses (PDVs) are an unusual group of insect viruses that exist in obligate mutualisms with certain parasitic hymenopteran wasps. During parasitization, virus particles are injected together with the wasp egg, venom and ovarian proteins into the lepidopteran host of the parasitic wasp. PDV gene expression in host tissues induces physiological alterations of the parasitized larvae that enable the survival and development of the parasitoid. The Campoletis sonorensis ichnovirus (CsIV) vankyrin genes encode proteins containing truncated ankyrin repeat domains with sequence homology to the inhibitory domains of NF-kappaB transcription factor inhibitors, IkappaBs. Vankyrins are thought to be involved in the suppression of NF-kappaB activity during immune response and developmental events in the parasitized host. The CsIV vankryin gene family is divided into two subclasses, those mainly expressed in the host fat-body and those that target host hemocytes. Infecting insect Sl2 and Sf9 cells with a recombinant baculovirus expressing fat-body specific vankyrin proteins P-vank-1 and I2-vank-3 significantly delayed death and lysis of the infected cells. Here we report that when P-vank-1 was expressed stably from Sf9 cells, prolonged survival of these cells was observed after baculovirus infection, UV irradiation, and treatment with the apoptosis-inducing chemical camptothecin compared to untransformed Sf9 cells. Furthermore, P-vank-1 inhibited nuclear and internucleosomal degradation and caspase activity after induction of apoptosis in Sf9 cells stably expressing P-vank-1. This is the first report of a PDV protein with anti-apoptotic function.

Keywords: apoptosis; polydnavirus; insect virus; vankyrin; NF-kappaB inhibitor 21. Nanoscale Imaging Of The Surface Of A Living Cell Frolenkov, Gregory(1)* Andrew I. Shevchuk(2), Pavel Novak(2), Ruben Stepanyan(1), Yuri E. Korchev(2); 1Department of Physiology, University of Kentucky, 2Division of Medicine, Imperial College, London, UK Imaging techniques with nanometer-scale resolution are generally unavailable for live cell studies.

Electron microscopy requires fixing or freezing the sample. Significant sample-probe interaction restricts the implementation of atomic force microscopy in live cell imaging. Here, we demonstrate the first 23

POSTER ABSTRACTS non-contact nanoscale-resolution technique for imaging the cell surface in a normal physiological environment. The technique represents a critical advance in the technology known as scanning ion conductance microscopy. It allows real-time imaging of the nanometer-scale cellular projections and even the individual protein complexes. Using this technique, we were able to achieve spatial resolution as good as ~10 nm. Although relatively slow processes, on the time scale of minutes, can be successfully studied with this technique, the faster phenomena require a faster imaging. Our latest data suggest that the most significant improvement of imaging speed could result from the use of faster piezo-driven actuators and advanced imaging algorithms. The ability to visualize spontaneous and evoked changes of nanostructures at the cell surface may lead to unanticipated discoveries in the mechanisms of cell motility, adhesion, mechanosensitivity, endocytosis, and exocytosis.

Keywords: Live cell imaging, nanotechnology, scanning ion conductance microscopy

development and ultimately consumers. This commercialization work is concentrating on scaling up our protocols to a pilot scale and comparing compound yield and purity from whole reaction systems with products from partially purified enzyme preparations. The project brings together different Kentucky-based expertise, know-how, and industry so as to achieve a new opportunity in life sciences in the Commonwealth, i.e. research, intellectual property, and genetic and plant materials from UK, bioprocessing and bulk plant-production capability from Kentucky Bioprocessing LLC. Keywords: leaf aldehyde, leaf alcohol, flavor, aroma, lipoxygenase

22. Commercialization Of Green Note Production Technology Fukushige, Hirotada*, David Hildebrand, Hirotada Fukushige; Plant and Soil Sciences; Alex Day, Barry Bratcher; KY Bioprocessing, University of Kentucky

In plants, changes in the levels of oleic acid (18:1), a major monounsaturated fatty acid (FA), results in the alteration of salicylic acid (SA)- and jasmonic acid (JA)-mediated defense responses. This is evident in the Arabidopsis ssi2/fab2 mutant, which encodes a defective stearoyl-acyl carrier proteindesaturase (S-ACP-DES) and consequently accumulates high levels of stearic acid (18:0) and low levels of 18:1. Consequently replenishing 18:1 levels results in restoration of wild-type-like signaling in the ssi2 mutant. We have identified several genes, which either participate in the prokaryotic fatty acid (FA) or generalized defense pathways and loss-of-function of which restores various phenotypes in ssi2 plants. In addition to SSI2, the Arabidopsis genome encodes six S-ACP-DES-like enzymes, the native expression levels of which are unable to compensate for a loss-of-function mutation in ssi2. The presence of low levels of 18:1 in the fab2 null mutant indicates that one or more SACP-DES isozymes contribute to the 18:1 pool. Since a mutation in ssi2 encoded S-ACP-DES interferes with the normal functioning of the plants, we examined the role of other Arabidopsis S-ACP-DES isoforms in defense signaling. Biochemical and expression analysis of leaf specific S-ACP-DES isoforms showed that 18:1 content is regulated at both transcriptional and pos-translational levels.

Interestingly, overexpression of SSI2 isoforms is able to rescue all ssi2-related phenotypes and restore wild type-like morphology by upregulating 18:1 levels. Knockout lines were also obtained in

Six-carbon aldehydes and alcohols such as E-2hexenal (leaf aldehyde) and Z-3-hexenol (leaf alcohol) are the major characteristic components of fresh, ‘green’ aroma and flavors of vegetables and fruits. These chemicals, collectively referred to as “green note” compounds, are widely used in the flavor and fragrance industry (FandF) as “fresh” flavor ingredients in foods and beverages, and the use of these “natural” compounds is increasing. The formation of these volatiles from hydrolyzed plant oil rich in linolenic acid only requires two enzymes; lipoxygenase and hydroperoxide lyase. The highest natural producer of these molecules is watermelon, Citrullus lanatus. We were the first to clone the C. lanatus hydroperoxide lyase cDNA. We have successfully transformed Nicotiana plants with this C. lanatus hydroperoxide lyase gene and demonstrated dramatically increased enzymatic activity in higher expressing plant tissues. Using a combination of these high expressing leaves and a seed preparation of a certain soybean line we have elucidated as a lipoxygenase source, we achieved about 10 times more hexenal production from linolenic acid than the highest producing commercial natural source. Commercialization of this technology would benefit of Kentucky farmers, local economic

23. Molecular, Genetic And Biochemical Characterization Of Oleic Acid-Regulated Defense Signaling In Plants Gao, Qing-Ming*, Xia Ye, Srivathsa Venugopal, Chandra-Shekara A. C., Pradeep Kachroo, Aardra Kachroo; Department of Plant Pathology, University of Kentucky

24

POSTER ABSTRACTS two of these desaturases but these did not have any effect on defense phenotypes or 18:1 levels.

However, the plants containing knockout mutations showed reduced total lipid content and altered lipid profile, suggesting that these genes are involved in normal physiological processes. Recent work from our laboratories have provided genetic and biochemical evidence linking 18:1 levels with R gene expression and pathogen resistance in both Arabidopsis and soybean, suggesting that soybean and Arabidopsis respond similarly to 18:1-derived cues.

Keywords: Plant defense, oleic acid, fatty acid, signaling

this possibility as a source of ethanol as a biofuel.

Acknowledgements: This work was supported by NIAAA (1- 3R41AA014555-01, 2R42AA014554-01, and 242AA014554-02), The Kentucky Science and Technology Consortium (145-402-12 and 184-512024) and the Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center.

Keywords: plants, Alcohol-resitant, protective compounds, biofuel

24. “Unnatural Selection" Generates AlcoholResistant Tobacco Plants With Potential Commercial Value Gunjan, Samir* S.K. Gunjan* (2), P. Lawless (3), M. Kulshrestha (2), M. Fu (3), D.T. Rogers (2), J. Czarnecki (2), J. Lutz (2), J.M. Littleton (1, 3) (1) Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky; (2)Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center; (3) Naprogenix Inc.

Experiments in our lab have focused on describing the underlying causes of the horizontal effect, where broadband contrast structure is weakly perceived at horizontal and strongly perceived at oblique orientations. Our hypothesis that the effect is due to an intrinsic, oriented gain control bias has been validated by recent experiments. We show that the presence of 1/f spatial noise skews the contrast sensitivity function toward higher spatial frequencies; that the peak of this function skews higher for oblique and vertical orientations; and that peak sensitivity is poorest for horizontal. We also show that at all orientations, peak sensitivity in 1/f spatial noise represents significant facilitation of contrast sensitivity, which supports our contention that the effect is produced through cross-channel gain control. All of these effects fit within a broader hypothesis, that the visual system is optimized for viewing spatial structure in real-world imagery, and that this optimization is directly measurable at the level of contrast sensitivity.

Keywords: 1/f noise, orientation, human vision, contrast sensitivity

Plants contain many “bio-active” metabolites, and this is often because these have been evolved as protective mechanisms. Therefore, mimicking evolutionary selection processes might rapidly generate novel protective compounds, or produce plants that over-produce protective compounds. We used activation tagging mutagenesis to generate a large population of “gain of function” mutant tobacco cells and then selected these for survival in increasing concentrations of alcohol. We obtained 5 mutant clones which survived in alcohol concentrations (500mM), ~5x those which killed non-mutant cells. These clones were regenerated into mutant plant lines which were similarly resistant to alcohol. Biochemical analysis of these lines showed that they contained abnormally high levels of anti-oxidant activity; for example line NtAR1 contained ~5x normal levels of glutathione. Because of similarities in the mechanisms of alcohol metabolism and toxicity in plant and human cells, extracts from these plants may also protect mammalian cells against alcohol-induced toxicity.

Another potential use of cells from the existing genomically-optimized alcohol-resistant tobacco plants is as sources of alcohol in a similar way to the use of yeast cells in fermentation. Normally the ability of plant cells to generate alcohol is limited by the toxicity of alcohol, but that is considerably reduced in these cells. We are currently evaluating

25. Human Spatial Vision In 1/f Noise Haun, Andrew* Edward A. Essock; Andrew M. Haun; Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Louisville

26. Cyclopropane Fatty Acid Accumulation In Plant Oil David Hildebrand*, Hirotada Fukushige; Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky There is an enormous need to meet a greater share of our material needs from renewable resources.

The worldwide market for lubricants is about 36 Mt including over 20 Mt for motor oils. The demand for renewable oil is increasing. Plant oils can currently be used as automobile engine oils but only for short periods and do not meet automotive manufacturer’s specifications due to the poor oxidative stability of the unsaturated fatty acids. Solutions to this dilemma include converting the double bonds commonly found in plant oils such as soybean oil 25

POSTER ABSTRACTS into cyclopropyl groups. Such groups can have adequate low temperature fluidity and lubricity + the needed very high oxidative stability. Various organisms including plants are capable of synthesizing and in some cases accumulating cyclopropyl groups in seed oil triacylglyceride (TAG).

Certain plants have evolved the capability for selective accumulation of as much as 90% of unusual fatty acids in seed oils and such processes are undergoing intensive investigations. The overall goal is to engineer plants to convert common unsaturated fatty acids that accumulate in seed oils into cyclopropyl groups and selectively transfer these moieties from membrane lipids into seed oil TAG. This will convert normal plant oil fatty acids into forms with superior industrial lubricant properties; high oxidative stability with good flow properties over a wide range of temperatures.

Various plant and microbial sources which naturally produce lubricant fatty acids have been identified and the genes needed for both cyclopropyl synthesis and selective transfer to TAG have been cloned from such sources and are being genetically engineered into major oilseeds that can be produced in Kentucky. This research will enhance both agriculture and industry in KY and elevate Kentucky’s contribution to national goals of reducing our dependence on imported oil.

Keywords: lubricants, motor oils, renewable oils, triacylglycerol, oilseeds 27. Enhanced Recombinant Protein Production By ParaTechs' Vankyrin-Enhanced Baculovirus Expression Technology Hilgarth, Roland(1)*, Jeremy Kroemer(1), Angelika Fath-Goodin(1,2), Bruce Webb(1,2); 1 ParaTechs Corp. 2 Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky The baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS) is a powerful and versatile eukaryotic protein expression system. The BEVS is being used to express and produce antigens for vaccine development, to manufacture human therapeutics, to develop faster acting biopesticides and as a protein expression system for a multitude of research projects. As a lytic viral expression system, the BEVS is limited by death and lysis of infected cells which precludes protein expression and requires repetitive infection cycles. This results in decreased productivity levels and higher production costs to generate recombinant proteins. ParaTechs Corp. has identified a gene family (vankyrins) from an insect virus that significantly delays death and lysis of baculovirus infected cells while enhancing

recombinant protein production. ParaTechs’ vankyrin-enhanced BEVS (VE-BEVS) increased recombinant protein production up to 15-fold when yellow fluorescent protein or VHv1.1, a secreted insect virus protein, were coexpressed with the vankyrin protein from a dual BEVS (VE-BEVS). When monoclonal Sf9 insect cell lines stably expressing vankyrin protein (VE-Sf9-01, 02, 03) were used to provide the protein activity in trans, a 5-fold increase in intracellular protein production and up to 9-fold increase in secreted protein production was obtained. As with VE-BEVS, an increase in cell viability and prolonged protein expression postinfection was also observed with VE cell lines.

ParaTechs’ enhanced VE Sf9 cells are commercially available. ParaTechs’ is also offering a VE monoclonal cell transformation service of customer provided cell lines.

Keywords: baculovirus expression vector system; protein expression; polydnavirus 28. Native Plants Related To St. John's Wort Contain Natural Products With Potentially Valuable Pharmacological Activity Holley, Bob* D.T. Rogers (2), S Gunjan, P. Lawless (3), R. Holley* (2), D. Brown (2), J. Czarnecki (2), J. Lutz (2), B. Li (3), J.M. Littleton (1, 3); (1)Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky; (2) Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center; (3) Naprogenix Inc. St John’s Wort (SJW--Hypericum perforatum) is the third most commonly used medicinal plant worldwide. While the well-known anti-depressant mechanism might be via inhibition of serotonin reuptake (as for Prozac), SJW extracts contain other pharmacological activities that are potentially valuable including modulation of NMDARs and opioid receptors. In screening native plant species we found that un-investigated native Hypericum species contain pharmacological activities similar to those in SJW. Using a process termed “Natural Product Genomics (NPG) we are attempting to optimize the pharmacological profile of Hypericum species.

Previous attempts to apply this approach to SJW have been disappointing, largely because the frequency of transformation is generally low.

However, we have succeeded in transforming hairy root cultures of native H punctatum, thus enabling us to use this species for our genomic approach.

Since Hypericums likely have similar genomes our process should be applicable to any of these species to “tailor” the different relative activities to whatever therapeutic use is required. H punctatum has been 26

POSTER ABSTRACTS cultivated at the KTRDC and we are now generating a population mutant cultures for the NPG approach.

Products derived from these “genomically-optimized” medicinal plants have improved IP positions from those in wild-type plants, and may increase the chances of the resulting extracts or compounds being developed and marketed as therapeutic agents. Acknowledgements: This work was supported by NIAAA (1R42AA016739-01, 2R42AA015475-01), KSTC (184-512-07-025), and KTRDC. Keywords: St John’s Wort, Hypericum, native plant, medicine, anti-depressant 29. Isolation And Identification Of PlantSpecific Peptide Deformylase Inhibitors From Soil - Microorganisms For Use As BroadSpectrum herbicides And Selectable Markers Houtz, Robert* Robert L. Houtz (PI, Horticulture), Mark A. Williams (Co-PI, Horticulture), Robert B. Grossman (Co-PI, Chemistry), Elisa M. D’Angelo (CoPI, Plant and Soil Science), and David W. Rodgers (Co-PI, Biochemistry); University of Kentucky This research is focused on the identification and characterization of peptide deformylase (PDF) inhibitors from soil-born microorganisms. We have previously demonstrated that PDF inhibitors have significant potential for use as broad-spectrum herbicides, as well as selectable markers in plant transformation vectors. PDF inhibitors behave as broad-spectrum herbicides and over-expression of chloroplast-localized PDF confers resistance to these inhibitors. This technology is owned and protected by the University of Kentucky (Patent #6,730,634, issued May 4, 2004). We have extensively characterized the broad-spectrum herbicidal characteristics of actinonin, a natural product with potent activity against PDF. Furthermore, we have engineered transgenic tobacco plants that exhibit complete resistance to this inhibitor. Actinonin is derived from a soil-borne Streptomyces, and although actinonin is highly selective towards PDF and has many desirable herbicidal traits, it is metabolized in plants at a rate that precludes its use as a broad-spectrum herbicide and it also inhibits bacterial PDF. Recently, an additional PDF inhibitor, also active against bacterial PDF, was discovered from Bacillus subtilis, another soil-borne organism.

We believe that the opportunity exists to isolate and identify additional natural products derived from soil-borne microorganisms capable of acting as potent plant-specific PDF inhibitors. As a first step in this research we have genetically engineered an E. coli cell line with two forms of PDF, an endogenous

bacterial PDF, and a plant specific PDF, each under the control of different titratable promoters. PDF inhibitors are lethal to this cell line except in the presence of IPTG or arabinose which cause expression of either plant or bacterial PDF respectively. Thus, unknown compounds can be screened both as potential PDF inhibitors as well as PDF inhibitors with specificity for either bacterial or plant PDF. Keywords: peptide defofrmylase, inhibitors, selectable markers, broad-spectrum herbicides 30. Molecular And Genetic Characterization Of Hypersensitive Response And Resistance To Turnip Crinkle Virus In Arabidopsis Jeong, Rae-Dong* Rae-Dong Jeong, A.C. ChandraShekara, Aardra Kachroo, Pradeep Kachroo; Department of Plant Pathology, University of Kentucky Inoculation of Turnip Crinkle Virus (TCV) on the resistant Arabidopsis ecotype Di-17 elicits hypersensitive response (HR), accompanied by increased expression of defense genes. The genetic analyses revealed that the HR to TCV is conferred by HRT, which encodes a CC-NBS-LRR class of resistance (R) protein. HR to TCV is initiated upon perception by HRT of the avirulence factor, the viral coat protein (CP). The CP also interacts with a member of nuclear-targeted NAC family of host transcription factors, designated TIP (TCVinteracting protein). However, plants carrying homozygous knockout mutation in the TIP gene induce normal HR upon TCV inoculation. These plants also show resistance to TCV. Interestingly, the mutation in TIP allow increased accumulation of TCV and Cucumber Mosaic Virus, suggesting that TIP is required for basal resistance but not for HRTmediated HR or resistance. In contrast to HR, resistance requires HRT and a recessive gene designated rrt. Interestingly, unlike most CC-NBSLRR R proteins, HRT-mediated resistance is dependent on EDS1 and independent of NDR1.

Resistance is also independent of RAR1 and SGT1 but is compromised in salicylic acid (SA) deficient eds5, pad4 or sid2 mutants. Interestingly, high endogenous SA due to the ssi2 or cpr5 mutation, confers resistance to TCV, in an HRT dependent but rrt independent manner. HRT-mediated HR and resistance are also dependent on light. A dark treatment, immediately following TCV inoculation, suppresses HR, resistance and activation of a majority of the TCV-induced genes. However, the absence of light does not affect either TCV-induced elevated levels of free SA or the expression of HRT. 27

POSTER ABSTRACTS Interestingly, in the dark, transgenic plants overexpressing HRT showed susceptibility but overexpression of HRT coupled with high levels of endogenous SA results in pronounced resistance.

Consistent with these results is the finding that exogenous application of SA prior to TCV inoculation partially overcomes the requirement for light. Light is also required for HR and resistance against N gene-mediated HR and resistance to Tobacco Mosaic Virus, suggesting that it is an important factor, which may be generally required during defense signaling.

Keywords: plant defense, signaling, virus, Arabidopsis 31. Transcription Of Nitrification Genes By The Methane-Oxidizing Bacterium, Methylococcus Capsulatus Strain Bath Klotz, Martin G.* Martin G. Klotz, Jay Gulledge, Amisha T. Poret-Peterson; University of Louisville, Department of Biology Methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) oxidize methane sequentially to formaldehyde, a poison, which then serves as the sole source for energy (ATP) production and carbon assimilation. Sufficient diversity and abundance of MOB are needed to reduce the atmospheric methane concentration to prevent imbalance and significant increase in radiative forcing leading to global warming. The first step of methane oxidation is carried out by a membrane enzyme called particulate methane monooxygenase (pMMO). This enzyme is related by descent to ammonia monooxygenase (AMO), which in ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) facilitates the oxidation of ammonia to hydroxylamine, a powerful mutagen. Consequently, pMMO of MOB will also oxidize varying amounts of ammonia to hydroxylamine, which needs to be detoxified. AOB are known to detoxify hydroxylamine by an enzyme called hydroxylamine oxidoreductase (HAO), which extracts energy and reducing power in the process to support growth of AOB and generates nitrite in the nitrification process. Some MOB are known to produce nitrite from ammonia and this ability was attributed to a protein different from HAO. The globally increasing input of nitrogen into the system in form of ammonia fertilizer as well as anthropogenic and microbial NOx emissions have led to a significant elevation of fixed nitrogen levels to twice the natural range. While this is in itself a massive contribution to global warming capacity, the ammonia input has also led to significant loss of methane sink due to competitive inhibition of pMMO and hydroxylamine poisoning of MOB. Our project

discovered that surviving MOB have and express HAO when challenged with ammonia.

Keywords: bacterial methane and ammonia oxidation, global warming 32. Native Plants Contain Neuroprotective Compounds With Unusual Pharmacological Activity At NMDA And Nicotinic Receptors Kulshrestha, Manish* Dennis T Rogers (2), Patrick Lawless (3), May Fu (3), Robert Holley (2), Manish Kulshrestha* (2), Peter Crooks (1), Linda Dwoskin (1), and John Littleton (1, 3); (1) Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky; (2)Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center; (3) Naprogenix Inc. Drugs which act on human glutamate/NMDA receptors (NMDARs) and the alpha7 subtype of nicotinic receptors for acetylcholine (nicAChRs) are of potential value in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s Dementia and Parkinson’s Disease. Some insect receptors are homologous with mammalian NMDARs and nicAChRs, and so some plant species may have evolved metabolites for defense against insects that also interact with these mammalian receptors. Unfortunately those that are known are unsuitable for therapeutic use due to their toxicity and/or abuse potential. Thus we used a pharmacological screening approach to evaluate extracts from ~1000 native plant species to identify those in which activity at NMDARs and/or nicAChRs is unlike that of previously known plant metabolites.

We used a “differential” screening approach in which activities at different sites on the NMDAR protein or at different subtypes of nicAChRs were compared.

This identified several species in which activity is unusual, and two genera, Solidago and Lobelia, which contain “novel” (previously uninvestigated) activity at both receptors. Functional screens confirm the appropriate receptor activity and show the extracts to be neuroprotective activity in human cell lines. Preliminary chemical analysis strongly suggests that the activity does not reside in previously known plant alkaloids. These plant species are now being cultivated and harvested for compound isolation and identification, and for testing semi-pure extracts in screens and animal models relevant to neuroprotection.

Acknowledgements: This work was supported by the Kentucky Science and Technology Consortium #145402-31 and the Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center.

Keywords: NATIVE PLANTS, nicotinic, insects, insecticide, neuroprotection 28

POSTER ABSTRACTS 33. Misfolded Proteins And Stress Resistance In Plants Kurepa, Jasmina*, Jan Smalle; Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky During adverse environmental conditions (e.g., heat shock, UV, drought and oxidative stress) proteins are damaged, lose their proper 3D conformation and unfold. If unfolded proteins accumulate in the cell they can form cytotoxic aggregates (e.g., inclusion bodies in bacteria or amyloid plaques in Alzheimer's patients). One of the essential functions of the 26S proteasome (26SP) is to degrade improperly folded proteins, thus helping the cell to cope with various stress conditions. Our main hypothesis is that the up-regulation of 26SP activity in plant cells leads to an increased tolerance to stresses that induce protein unfolding. To test this hypothesis and to identify the components related to the 26SP that confer stress resistance to plants, we pursued a twotracked strategy. The main results of both approaches will be presented.

Keywords: Proteasome, stress resistance, protein folding 34. Native Freshwater Aquatic Plants As A Source Of Tissue-Protective Anti-Oxidants Lawless, Patrick* P. Lawless* (1); E. Kaplan (1); M. Fu (1); D.T. Rogers (1); J.M. Littleton (1,3); (1) Naprogenix, Inc. (2)Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center; Univ. of Kentucky, Department (3) Dept of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky Many human diseases are caused by the generation of damaging free radicals inside cells. For example, in alcohol-dependent individuals human liver cells are continually exposed to high concentrations of alcohol for prolonged periods. Although plants are rarely exposed to exogenous alcohol they often generate alcohol intracellularly as an energetic response to low oxygen tension. Thus, during flooding, plants switch from oxidative metabolism to anaerobic fermentation reactions. Plant cells metabolize the alcohol that accumulates to acetaldehyde with the production of free radicals, and because these products are toxic to plant cells other metabolic pathways, including those to specialized anti-oxidant metabolites, are induced to protect the plant cell. Some plant metabolites might therefore protect human liver cells against alcoholinduced damage. Nowhere is this protective mechanism likely to be more highly developed than in some freshwater aquatic plants which must often maintain viability for several months while

completely submerged. Thus we have begun to test aqueous extracts of several native aquatic species for their anti-oxidant activity, and their ability to protect human liver cells against alcohol-induced toxicity. We found several aquatic plant species whose extracts were rich in anti-oxidant activity and were protective against alcohol-induced cell damage. Whether these screens can predict therapeutic value of plant extracts in alcohol-induced liver disease remains to be seen, but it seems certain that native aquatic plants are a relatively uninvestigated source of potent anti-oxidants.

Acknowledgements: NIAAA (2R42AA014554-01 and 2R42AA014554-02); Kentucky Science and Technology Center (184-512-07-024) Keywords: alcohol, ANTI-OXIDANTS, plants, liver protection 35. Optimizing The Anti-Cancer Potential Of The Madagascar Periwinkle Using Natural Product Genomics Technology Li, Baochun* S.K. Gunjan (2), D.T. Rogers (2), P. Lawless (3), R. Holley (2), D. Brown (2), J. Czarnecki (2), J. Lutz (2), B. Li* (3), N Monks (3), D Falcone (3) , J.M. Littleton (2,3); (1) Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center, (2) University of Kentucky, (3) Naprogenix Inc. The Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) produces the cytotoxic vinca alkaloids which have been used in cancer chemotherapy for at least 40 years. These alkaloids are too complex to be synthesized chemically, and are present in the plant in only tiny amounts. They are therefore very expensive natural products. We are attempting to increase the yields of known or novel alkaloids in the plant using Natural Products Genomics (NPG), a technology developed at UK/KTRDC and licensed exclusively to Naprogenix Inc. In NPG very large populations of mutant plant cell cultures are generated using activation tagging mutagenesis (ATM). This inserts viral “enhancer sequences” into the plant genome switching on surrounding genes at random. These mutations are dominant, and some are much more stable than previous methods of causing mutations in plant cells. The resulting population of mutant clones from ATM should include some in which the production of the natural alkaloids is increased, and maybe some in which “novel” active alkaloids are present (for example if a normally “silent” gene is switched on). In C roseus we are generating large populations of mutant hairy roots using Agrobacterium rhizogenes-induced transformation and then using a pre-selection step before screening for cytotoxicity of extracts. The 29

POSTER ABSTRACTS expected products are cultures or plants in which the anti-cancer activity of the alkaloids they contain has been “optimized” by modifying the expression of the plants own genes. These plants or cultures may be of considerable value as new production vehicles for these expensive natural products.

Keywords: Cancer, plants, Madagascar periwinkle, Catharanthus roseus, vinca alkaloids 36. Novel NMDA Receptor Modulator Based On Agmatine Is Positive In An Entire Alcoholism Anti-Relapse Screening Hierarchy Littleton, John* J Littleton*, S Barron, P Crooks, J Ring, V Sonar, R Holley, D T Rogers, T Stepanyan, E Kaplan, A Kowalski, J Farook, B Lewis, A Hutton Kehrberg, KA Wellman.

(Everyone associate with University ) University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546-0236, United States.

Agmatine is a polyamine analog in the metabolic pathway to nicotine in tobacco. Among other biological actions it is an inhibitory modulator of the mammalian glutamate/NMDA receptor (NMDAR).

Such compounds, for example acamprosate (“Campral”) and memantine (“Namenda”) are therapeutically valuable in alcoholism and Alzheimer’s Dementia respectively. Among several active compounds based on the structure of agmatine and synthesized at UK, the aryliminoguanidine, JR220, shows the molecular and cellular characteristics of an inhibitory modulator of NMDARs via a polyamine site. JR220 was subsequently tested in a hierarchy of screens that were developed and validated based on the antirelapse activities of acamprosate, memantine and topiramate. In neuroblastoma, it inhibits NMDARmediated toxicity enhanced by alcohol withdrawal (AWD), and also inhibits AWD-induced toxicity in organotypic hippocampal cultures. In vivo, JR220 is a highly effective inhibitor of AWD seizures in mice, and also inhibits alcohol-conditioned behavior in the plus maze in mice. JR220 is also effective in the “alcohol deprivation effect” model of relapse in rats, and in an experimental stress-induced alcohol consumption paradigm in C57Bl mice. JR220 achieves these effects at concentrations which are not toxic, and at doses which do not have overt behavioral effects that would confound the tests. At higher doses, JR220 may have anxiolytic and/or sedative properties. JR220 is at least 5x more potent than the clinically-used anti-relapse agent, acamprosate, in every test. These data suggest that JR220 is a candidate anti-relapse drug with neuroprotective properties. Acknowledgements: Supported by NIAAA Grant 2RO1 AA12600.

Keywords: ALCOHOLISM, plants, neuroprotective, anti-relapse drugs 37. Isolation And Identification Of PlantSpecific Peptide Deformylase Inhibitors From Soil Lucas, Shawn* Robert L. Houtz (PI, Horticulture), Mark A. Williams (Co-PI, Horticulture), Robert B. Grossman (Co-PI, Chemistry), Elisa M. D’Angelo (CoPI, Plant and Soil Science), and David W. Rodgers (Co-PI, Biochemistry), Shawn T. Lucas (PhD. Student, Plant and Soil); University of Kentucky Research in our laboratories has identified a potentially valuable competitor to existing technologies for broad-spectrum herbicides, as well as selectable markers in plant transformation vectors. This technology utilizes an essential plant gene, peptide deformylase, and peptide deformylase inhibitors. Peptide deformylase inhibitors behave as broad-spectrum herbicides and over-expression of chloroplast-localized peptide deformylase confers resistance to these inhibitors. Both of these technologies are owned and protected by the University of Kentucky (Patent #6,730,634, issued May 4, 2004). We have extensively characterized the broad-spectrum herbicidal characteristics of actinonin, a natural product with potent activity against peptide deformylase. Furthermore, we have engineered transgenic tobacco plants that exhibit complete resistance to this inhibitor. Actinonin is derived from a soil-borne Streptomyces, and although actinonin is highly selective towards peptide deformylase and has many desirable herbicidal traits, it is metabolized in plants at a rate that precludes its use as a broad-spectrum herbicide and it also inhibits bacterial peptide deformylase.

Recently, an additional peptide deformylase inhibitor, also active against bacterial deformylase, was discovered from Bacillus subtilis, another soilborne organism (1). We believe that the opportunity exists to isolate and identify additional natural products derived from soil-borne microorganisms capable of acting as potent plant-specific peptide deformylase inhibitors. Therefore, we propose to screen a large number of soil-derived microbial extracts as sources for plant specific peptide deformylase inhibitors using our combined expertise in the molecular biology and biochemistry of plant peptide deformylase, isolation of soil microorganisms, and isolation and purification of biologically-active compounds.

Keywords: peptide deformylase, inhibitors, selectable markers, soil microorganisms, herbicides, natural products 30

POSTER ABSTRACTS

38. Using Transgenic Plant Cell-Based Screens For Activity At Estrogen Receptors In Extracts From Native Plants Monks, Noel* S Gunjan (1), J Lutz (1), DT Rogers (1), P Lawless (3), N Monks* (3), H Swanson (2), D Falcone (3), and J Littleton (2, 3); (1) Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center; (2)University of Kentucky; (3) Naprogenix Inc. Phytoestrogens which activate human estrogen receptors (ERs) reduce the incidence of breast cancer. This is because they are generally weak activators of the ER and prevent estradiol (which is a very strong activator) from causing its strong proliferative effect on cancer cells. Drugs which act like this are “partial ER agonists” and include the commonest anti-breast cancer treatment, tamoxifen.

We are searching for native plant species containing this type of activity using plant cell-based assays. In these the human ER binding domain and an estrogen responsive element linked to the gene for “Green Fluorescent Protein” (GFP) are expressed in transgenic A thaliana seedling roots. All known plant pyhytoestrogens, and the known drugs such as estradiol and tamoxifen were active in the screen causing GFP expression by binding to the ER. Around 40 native species have been screened focusing on native freshwater aquatic plants. 4 of these were positive with the extract from one Cacalia plantaginea being a strong ER agonist whereas another Scirpus acutis produced an extract which was very similar in partial agonist activity to tamoxifen. These activities were confirmed in a more conventional mammalian cell assay (although the S acutis extract was highly cytotoxic to mammalian cells at the original concentration screened). We conclude that this novel screening method is of value in testing crude plant extracts and that there are novel potentially valuable phytoestrogens awaiting discovery in native plants Keywords: Phytoestrogens, estrogen, cancer, plants 39. Development Of An Assay System For The Measurement Of Beta-Secretase Murphy, Paul* Rachel R. Ahmed, Feng Li, M. Paul.

Murphy*; Department of Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry and the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging, University of Kentucky Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is caused by the production and deposition of the amyloid-ß peptide (Aß). ßSecretase is the rate limiting enzymatic activity in the production of Aß, and is therefore crucial for the pathogenesis of disease. An increase in ß-secretase

is associated with both age-related disease and normal aging. ß-secretase is also highly active during normal development, where it plays a role in myelination. A PubMed search for ß-secretase yields more than 1700 hits, and AD yields more than 50,000. In spite of obvious interest within the scientific community, the commercial assay systems available ß-secretase are at best only marginal, and are unable to distinguish between the two major forms of the enzyme (BACE1 and BACE2). Many techniques used are, in fact, only semi-quantitative.

It should be possible to develop a superior assay system, using simple technology, that can be purchased by any investigator that is interested in ßsecretase. Conditions could easily be developed for a ready made test kit that could be used by individuals with minimal experience in assay development. Over the past year, our lab has gathered preliminary data indicating that the assay system that we propose is feasible. In this project we propose to develop, validate and test this assay system for use as a tool by the research community, and as a potentially viable product. Studies performed using this tool will lead to novel insights into the underlying processes that drive neurodegeneration, and will help in the future development of therapeutics.

Keywords: Beta Secretase, Aging, Alzheimer's Disease 40. Theophylline Molecularly Imprinted Polymer: Effect of Formulation Variables On Its Binding To Theophylline Patel, Dhavel* Dhaval Patel, Christin Hollis, Michael Jay; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky Purpose: Molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) have recently been used for the controlled and targeted drug delivery as well as for removal of contaminants from waste streams. Optimization of binding and dissociation of a drug molecule from a MIP are essential to obtain a desired drug release profile. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of formulation variables on the binding of theophylline to the MIP. Methods: Theophylline MIP was prepared by dissolving theophylline in acetonitrile, followed by addition of a crosslinker (EDMA), a functional polymer (methacrylic acid), and a thermal initiator (AIBN). Polymerization was achieved by heating the final solution at 60 degree C for 16 hours. Precipitates of the MIP were collected and washed for several hours to remove bound theophylline, and the washed MIPs were subsequently dried at room temperature.

Theophylline binding studies were carried out by 31

POSTER ABSTRACTS adding the dried MIP to a theophylline solution.

Samples were collected at various times and assayed using HPLC. The effect of functional polymer and crosslinker levels on theophylline binding were studied using a fractional factorial experimental design. The effects of solvent type and pore former (ascorbic acid) on theophylline binding were also studied using the same technique.

Results: Theophylline binding increased from 5.1% to 10.2% when the functional polymer level was increased from 0.01 to 0.03 M (p<0.01). However, theophylline binding decreased from 9.7% to 6.3% when the crosslinker level was increased from 0.05 to 0.13 M (p<0.05). When the solvent of the theophylline solution was changed from acetonitrile to methanol:acetic acid (90:10), theophylline binding decreased from 9.6% to 5.8%. This was attributed to the polar nature of the latter solvent. The addition of a pore former had no statistically significant effect on theophylline binding. Current studies involve measuring the effect of other pore formers and glass supports for the MIPs. Conclusion: Functional polymer and crosslinker levels significantly affect theophylline binding to the MIP. Decreasing the polarity of the solvent appears to provide higher theophylline binding. Formulation variables may be used to optimize the drug release profile from a MIP to develop a targeted or controlled drug delivery system.

Keywords: Molecularly imprinted polymer, theophylline, binding, initiator, crosslinker, poreformer 41. Exploring Collaborations Pathak, Yashwant*. Tran, H.T., Facione, F.P., Daugherty, K.K.,., Soja, W.D., Ansong, M.A., Clark, D.B., Cleary, D.B., Coronel, M.L., Hughes, C.F., Koomer, A., Stephens, E.A., Wessel, H.L., Yendapally, R.; College of Pharmacy, Sullivan University, Louisville With the recent approval by Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) for the pre accreditation status, Sullivan University College of Pharmacy will welcome the inaugural class of students in July 2008. The college offers a three year professional graduate program leading to a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree. There are more than 18 faculty members with expertise in various fields such as Pharmaceutical Technology, Physical Pharmacy, Microbiology, Biotechnology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Pharmacokinetics, clinical practices in various settings, and collaborative research. The college is developing over 3000 sq. ft. of laboratory space as well as developing research facilities. The

faculty have expertise in various aspects of the pharmaceutical business including pre formulation studies, formulation and characterization of drug delivery systems, nano drug delivery systems (especially nano dispersions and nano carriers), polymeric drug delivery systems, microbiological evaluations, clinical studies, nutraceutical formulations and applications, and others. This poster describes the achievements of the college of pharmacy in the last year as well as discusses the expertise of its faculty.

Keywords: Collaborations, Pharma industry, Formulatuions, Research 42. An In Vivo Evidence That The CD45negative Adult Marrow-Derived CXCR4+ SSEA-1+ OCT-4+ Very Small Embryonic-Like (VSEL) Stem Cells May Differentiate Into CD45positive Long Term Repopulating Hematopoietic Stem Cells Ratajczak, Janina*, Magda Kucia, Wu Wang , Marcin Wysoczynski ,Mariusz Ratajczak; University of Louisville Mounting evidence accumulates that bone marrow (BM) contains a population of pluripotent stem cells (PSC) that give rise to long-term repopulating hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). Recently we identified in murine BM a homogenous population of rare ( 0.01% of BMMNC) and very small (2–4 µm) Sca-1+ lin– CD45– cells that express by RQ-PCR and immunhistochemistry markers of PSC such as SSEA1, Oct-4, Nanog and Rex-1 and highly express Rif-1 telomerase protein (Leukemia 2006;20,857–869).

Direct electronmicroscopical analysis revealed that these cells display several features typical for primary epiblast-derived embryonic stem cells such as i) a large nuclei surrounded by a narrow rim of cytoplasm, and ii) open-type chromatin (euchromatin). In co-cultures with C2C12 murine sarcoma supportive feeder-layer, these cells grow spheres that are composed of immature CXCR4+SSEA-1+Oct-4+ cells that have large nuclei containing euchromatin and, if plated into cultures promoting tissue differentiation, show pluripotency and expand into cells from all three germ-cell layers.

Based on this, we called them very small embryonic like (VSEL) stem cells. However, VSEL isolated freshly from the BM do not posses immediate hematopoietic activity - they neither grow hematopoietic colonies nor radioprotect lethally irradiated recipients. Recently, however, we noticed that if plated over supportive OP9 cell line, these CD45– VSEL give rise to colonies of CD45+CD41+Gr-1–Ter119– cells where their 32

POSTER ABSTRACTS phenotype resembles those of the earliest hematopoietic cells that are derived in vitro from established embryonic cell lines. This hematopoietic differentiation of VSEL was accompanied by upregulation of mRNA for several genes regulating hematopoiesis (e.g. PU-1, c-myb, LMO2, Ikaros).

More importantly, the CD45+CD41–Gr-1–Ter119– cells expanded from VSEL isolated from GFP+ mice if transplanted into wild-type animals protected them from lethal irradiation and differentiated in vivo into all major hematopoietic lineages (e.g., Gr1+, B220+ and CD3+ cells). This hematopoietic activity was maintained after transplantation into secondary recipients. Based on this, we postulate that i) VSEL are PSC that give rise to HSC and ii) that CD45+ cells may derive from a CD45– population. Thus we propose that VSEL are a population of BM-residing PSC that may give rise to long-term engrafting hematopoietic stem cells.

Keywords: Hematopoiesis 43. Targeting Estrogens To Bone Richter, Natali* Natali Richter, Sujan Singh, Qian Xu, Kathleen Hamilton, Michael Voor, Kevyn Merten, Jeff Falcone, Jian Cai, K. Grant Taylor and William M. Pierce, Jr.; University of Louisville Decreased estrogen levels in post-menopausal women leads to higher rates of bone resorption, and, hence, lower bone density. Hormonereplacement therapy raises estrogen levels and prevents further bone loss. The major drawback of HRT is an increased risk of cancer of the female reproductive tissues (Colditz, et al, 1995; Schairer, et al, 2000; Persson, et al, 1999; Smith, et, 1975; Ziel and Finkle, 1975; Rodriguez, et al, 2001). The alternative antiresorptive agents of choice for the treatment of osteoporosis, include the bisphosphonates (FosamaxÒ, ActonelÒ, BonivaÒ), can cause deleterious side effects on the lining of the esophagus (Sia, Iser, Heng and Chen, 2004).

Additionally, bisphosphonates and their conjugates as drugs exhibit long half-lives (several months to years) and poor oral availability (less than 1%) (Stepensky, Kleinberg, and Hoffman, 2003).

Parathyroid hormone and related compounds (ForteoÒ) build bone but are not used long term and require frequent injections. In this project, the mineralized extracellular matrix of bone tissue (primarily hydroxyapatite) is utilized to act as a repository for novel bone targeted estrogens that preserve bone mass and strength following surgically induced menopause.

Keywords: drug delivery, bone, estrogen, osteoporosis

44. Screening For Novel Insecticidal Activity In Native Plant Species Rogers, Trent(1)*, P Lawless (3), M Fu (3), R Palli (2), J Littleton (2, 3); (1)Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center, (2)University of Kentucky, (3) Naprogenix Inc Synthetic “neonicotinoid” insecticides act on nicotinic receptors for acetylcholine (nicAChRs) in the insect brain but are non-toxic to mammals because of their low “binding affinity” to mammalian nicAChRs. However, insects are now developing resistance to neonicotinoids, making novel insecticidal structures badly needed. Many plants in this area produce nicotine-like metabolites but those that are known are equally active on mammalian and insect nicAChRs, and so are too toxic to be of much use.

However, the reason why they are already known is usually because the plants themselves are toxic to humans or livestock. Our solution was to make a collection of 1000 native plant species and to test extracts of these for their ability to bind either to insect or to mammalian nicAChRs. Binding to these receptors was very common (about 35% of species) but only 10 species contained activity that was ~10 fold more selective for insect nicAChRs. One of these Solidago nemoralis (grey goldenrod) is a close relative of the Kentucky state flower. Semi-purified fractions from some of these extracts are toxic to Manduca sexta (the “tobacco hornworm”) which is hard to kill and almost completely resistant to nicotine-like alkaloids. Chemical analysis fails to detect any of the plant alkaloids known to be active on nicAChRs, so it is likely that we are dealing with previously unknown metabolites. If so these may be valuable either as novel natural insecticides or as “lead compounds” for structural modification by the insecticide industry. Acknowledgements: KTRDC, KSTC. Keywords: insecticide, native plants 45. Novel Aryliminoguanidines And Acrylonitriles For NMDA Receptor Modulation Detected By High Throughput Molecular Screenin.

Rogers, Trent* Dennis Trent Rogers* (2), Robert Holley (2), Eva Kaplan (2), Vijay Sonar (1) Peter Crooks (1), Josh Ring (1), May Fu (2), John Littleton (1); (1) Dept of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky; (2) Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center Inhibitory modulators of NMDARs are potentially of considerable value as anti-relapse agents in 33

POSTER ABSTRACTS alcoholism and as neuroprotective compounds in several diseases including Alzheimer’s Dementia. We use natural products from plants as lead compounds, generating libraries of synthetic derivatives which are rapidly screened for the appropriate molecular activity profile. NMDAR modulation is assessed by measuring effects on [3H]-MK801 binding under pre-equilibrium conditions in the presence and absence of the polyamine spermidine. The screen is designed for “polyamine-site-selective” inhibitory compounds at the NMDAR, and this identified agmatine and plantderived indole alkaloids as leads. ~1000 synthetic compounds based on these structures were assayed in this “differential screen”. 6 iminoguanidine compounds are ~200x more potent and 5x more selective for the polyamine condition than agmatine.

From ~700 indole-like compounds only 5 were more active than parent compounds, and none were selective for the polyamine sites. However, recently 7 acrylonitrile intermediates were identified serendipitously as being selective for the polyamine binding condition. An interesting characteristic is that both series contain positive modulators as well as inhibitory modulators at the NMDAR. Whether either will prove to have therapeutic value remains to be seen, but at least one of the iminoguanidines JR220 is active in an anti-relapse screening hierarchy and is a protective agent in several cellular models of neurotoxicity. Acknowledgements: This research was supported by NIAAA grants AA12600 and AA014555, and the Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center.

Keywords: alcoholism, plants, medicine, neuroprotective, Alzheimer’s Dementia 46. Novel Iminoguanidines Modulate NMDA Receptor Function In Cell-Based Screens: Influence of Polyamines Rogers, Trent(2)*, Robert Holley (2), Eva Kaplan (2), Josh Ring (1), Vijay Sonar (1), May Fu (2), John Littleton (1), Peter Crooks (2); (1) Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Kentucky; (2) Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center Co-activation of the glutamate/NMDA receptor (NMDAR) by polyamines plays a fundamental role in many common disease processes including stroke, Alzheimer’s dementia, and alcohol withdrawalinduced neurotoxicity. Thus NMDAR polyamine modulatory sites are potentially valuable targets for development of drugs which could be used in treating these diseases. Based on a differential screening approach we synthesized and tested

several hundred derivatives of the natural product agmatine. The first 4 compounds found to affect binding in a polyamine-dependent fashion were aryliminoguanidines designated JR132, JR218, JR220, JR223. Of these, JR132 showed positive modulation whereas all the other compounds appeared to be inhibitory modulators of the NMDAR. These effects were confirmed in functional screens using SY5Y neuroblastoma cells in which NMDARmediated toxicity was evaluated in the presence of maximally effective concentrations of the coagonists glycine and spermidine. Next we evaluated the iminoguanidines on NMDA-induced toxicity in the absence of exogenous spermidine. As predicted, compounds such as JR220 and JR223 are ineffective under these conditions, whereas JR132 enhances NMDA responses. This has important implications for the value of these compounds as therapeutic agents because indirect modulation of NMDAR function in this way is predicted to have less neurotoxic and other adverse effects than compounds acting by direct inhibition of the receptor. The activity of these compounds in simple models of human disease is now under evaluation. Acknowledgements: This research was supported by NIAAA grant # AA12600 and AA014555, and the Kentucky Tobacco Research and Development Center.

Keywords: NMDAR, Alzheimer’s dementia, alcoholism, plants 47. A Simple Array Platform For MicroRNA Analysis And Its Application Tang, Xiaoqing* Xiaoqing Tang, Haining Zhu, Guiliang Tang; University of Kentucky MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are a novel class of small noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression at the post-transcriptional level and play a critical role in many important biological processes. Most miRNAs are conserved between humans and mice, which makes it possible to analyze their expressions with a set of selected array probes. Here, we report a simple array platform that can detect 553 nonredundant miRNAs encompassing the entire set of miRNAs for humans and mice. The platform features carefully selected and designed probes with optimized hybridization parameters. Potential crossreaction between mature miRNAs and their precursors was investigated. The array platform was used to analyze miRNAs in the mouse central nervous system (CNS, spinal cord and brain), and two other non-CNS organs (liver and heart). Two types of miRNAs, differentially expressed organ/tissue-associated miRNAs and ubiquitously expressed miRNAs, were detected in the array 34

POSTER ABSTRACTS analysis. In addition to the previously reported neuron-related miR-124a, liver-related miR-122a, and muscle-related miR-133a, we also detected new tissue-associated miRNAs (e.g., liver-associated miR194). Interestingly, while the majority of premiRNAs were undetectable, miR690, miR709, and miR720 were clearly detected at both mature and precursor levels by the array analysis, indicating a limited cross-reaction between pre-miRNAs and their mature miRNAs. The reliability of this array technology was validated by comparing the results with independent Northern blot analyses and published data. A new approach of data normalization based on Northern blot analysis of one ubiquitously expressed miRNA is introduced and compared with traditional approaches. We expect this miRNA array platform to be useful for a wide variety of biological studies.

Keywords: microRNA; microRNA profiling; microRNA array platform.

48. Pharmacy Professionals’ Status In Kentucky Tran, Hieu*, Facione, F.P., Daugherty, K.K., Pathak, Y.V., Soja, W.D., Ansong, M.A., Clark, D.B., Cleary, D.B., Coronel, M.L., Hughes, C.F., Koomer, A., Preuss, C.V., Stephens, E.A., Wessel, H.L., Yendapally, R.; College of Pharmacy, Sullivan University The U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that from 2002 to 2012, the number of degrees granted in pharmacy will not keep pace with the number of job openings created by employment growth and attrition. Demand for pharmacists is expected to grow faster than the average for all occupations through the year 2012.

This national trend translates locally to the Kentuckiana region. Kentucky Occupational Employment Statistics indicate that for 2002 to 2012, the total annual pharmacy job openings (including both growth and separations) are expected to be 400. The total estimated current employment of pharmacists in Kentucky is 3,754.

According to a November 2003 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimate, the median salary for Pharmacists in Kentucky is $84,060. According to the Pharmacy Manpower Project’s Aggregate Demand Index by state, both Kentucky’s demand index of 4.56 and Indiana’s index of 4.25 indicate a relatively high demand for pharmacists with significant difficulty filling open positions. From July 2008 Sullivan University College of Pharmacy will be starting classes for 65 students and this will partially address the needs of the

Kentucky state for Pharmacists. It is expected that majority of the students will be from Kentucky state and more representation will be given to rural Kentucky areas.

Keywords: Pharmacists, Porfessional Degree in Pharmacy, Statistical need for pharmacist in Kentucky 49. Impact Of Intracellular ATP Delivery On Cytoarchitecture Of Rabbit Skin Wounds Tseng, Michael(1)*, Sufan Chien(2); 1Department of Anatomical Sciences and Neurobiology, University of Louisville; (2)Department of Surgery, University of Louisville During our intracellular ATP delivery for wound study, we have found a phenomenon never reported before: an extremely fast granular tissue growth. In a rabbit ear wound model, granular tissue started to appear only one day after treatment. This study was to determine the cellular composition of such fast granulomatous growth using conventional light microscopy, electron microscopy, and immunohistochemistry. In a group of 15 young rabbits, four wounds (6 mm in diameter) were made on the ventral side of each ear under general anesthesia. On one ear, the wounds were treated with ATP-encapsulated lipid vesicles (ATP-vesicles, 10 mM of ATP). On the other ear, the wounds were treated with normal saline. The rabbits were scarified at days 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6, and wound samples were taken for HandE stained sections, SEM and TEM analyses in selected blocks. An exuberant growth appeared as early as day one in wound edges of the ATP-vesicles treated sites. Its expansion resulted in a tissue scaffold over the circular wound. As the granular scaffold became more organized an epithelial ridge grew beneath this scaffold. The constituent of the granular tissue consists of blood borne cells, fibrin, and cellular debris. Extensive architectural changes occurred in the epidermal layer and in the lamina propria. CD 31 immunohistochemistry and ultrastructural data substantiated the formation of extensive new vasculature in lamina propria. Proliferations of this component appear to be pivotal to the formation of the granular tissue and for the epidermal repair. The mechanistic basis for such an extremely fast tissue growth caused by topical high energy delivery is not clear yet, but appears to be multifaceted involving cellular metabolism with possible contribution of marrow derived stem cell. Such a fast granular tissue growth may prove to be useful in wound, trauma, and other surgical applications. (Supported in part by NIH grants HL64186, DK74566, AR52984, 35

POSTER ABSTRACTS University of Louisville CEG54049, and Novera contract OICB060423) Keywords: __ 50. Alternative Bone Graft Solutions Voor, Michael*; Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Orthopaedic Bioengineering Laboratory; Robert L. Burden, Jr., M.S.; Orthopaedic Bioengineering Laboratory, University of Louisville Introduction: Bone grafting procedures are commonplace in orthopaedics. Autograft is the gold standard, but it must be obtained through an additional surgical procedure in the same patient.

Allograft bone obtained from cadavers is expensive and carries disease risk. A variety of synthetic materials such as hydroxyapatite cement (HAC) can be used, but they typically cannot meet the dual requirements for strength and biologic incorporation because stronger materials incorporate too slowly and vice versa. It may be possible to combine the best features of synthetic materials and natural bone to create a better bone graft substitute. Methods: A rabbit model was used to compare the biologic incorporation of xenograft versus allograft in a cancellous bone defect. Twelve rabbits were used and defects were prepared for histologic evaluation after three or ten weeks of healing. The amount of new bone and the degree of inflammatory response were quantified. The mechanical behavior of various combinations of bone material and HAC were also evaluated. Results: The xenograft was slower to incorporate than allograft in the rabbit model.

Nevertheless, by ten weeks there was extensive new bone formation in the xenograft filled defects. The inflammatory response was appropriate and not excessive. Combinations of xenograft bone and HAC were shown to be similar in strength to fully dense HAC samples. Discussion: The biologic and mechanical behavior of our xenograft-based material was encouraging. Ongoing experiments will show whether the combination material will yield greater strength and more rapid biological incorporation in an animal bone graft site.

Keywords: Bone graft, ceramic, implant, cement, xenograft 51. Up-Regulation Of Pro And AntiInflammatory Cytokines Expression During Intracellular Energy Delivery For Wound Care Wan, Rong* Q.Zhang, Wan R, Mo Y, Wang J, S. Chien; Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Science, Department of Surgery, University of Louisville

Our recent studies showed that intracellular ATP delivery resulted in the extremely fast granular tissue growth in rabbit ear wound model. The molecular mechanism is totally unclear. It is well known that wound healing is a complex biological process that integrates the function of a variety of cell types, growth factors, and cytokines. The proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1? (IL1?), monocyte chemotactic protein -1 (MCP-1) and tumor necrosis factor a (TNF-a) play key roles during wound healing process.This study was designed to investigate these factors during wound healing process when intracellular ATP delivery was used. Eighteen young rabbits were used to establish the ear wound model. Four wounds (6 mm in diameter) were made on the ventral side of each ear. The wounds on one ear were treated with ATPencapsulated lipid vesicles which contained 10 mM of ATP, and the other ear was treated with normal saline as control. Dressing changes were made daily.

After 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 15 days of treatment, the rabbits were scarified and wound tissues were taken for isolation of total RNA for RT-PCR measurements. The results showed that intracellular ATP delivery accelerated skin wound healing. The expression of IL-1? and MCP-1 was significantly higher in the ATP-vesicles-treated group than that in the saline-treated group after 1 and 2 days of treatment. The expression of TNF-a was significantly higher after 1 day treatment, but not after 2-day treatment. Though the mechanism of the increase expression of these cytokines is still unclear, ATP may stimulate the transition of the inflammatory cells from the circulation to accumulate in the wound sites that may promote the wound healing.

Keywords: Wound, ischemia, ATP, intracellular 52. PRDM16 - A Novel Zinc Finger Protein Linked To Palatal Clefting Warner, Dennis* Dennis R. Warner*, Robert M. Greene, and M. Michele Pisano; Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Craniofacial Biology and the University of Louisville Birth Defects Center, University of Louisville Cleft palate is amongst the most frequent birth defects in humans, affecting ~1 in 2000 births. The palate, or roof of the mouth, separates the oral and nasal cavities. Improper formation of the palate during embryonic development leads to a palatal cleft (an opening between the oral and nasal cavities), which can impact feeding, speech, hearing and socialization of the affected child. Numerous surgical interventions are required to correct this defect and subsequent secondary problems such as 36

POSTER ABSTRACTS those affecting speech and hearing may persist and require life-long therapy. Despite its prevalence, the causes of cleft palate are not fully understood, although both genetic and environmental factors appear to be involved. Intense research has revealed some of the genes and proteins that play a crucial role in normal palate development. We have identified one such gene/protein that may be important, named PRDM16. The objective of this project is to characterize the role of PRDM16 in development of the palate using the mouse (Mus musculus) as a model organism. We have found that PRDM16 binds to a protein that relays extracellular signals from transforming growth factor ß (TGFß).

TGFß is known to be critical for palate development.

We have also found that PRDM16 is widely expressed during mouse embryonic development and is specifically expressed in mesenchymal cells of the anterior secondary palate. Experimental reductions in the expression of PRDM16 in cultured mesenchymal cells led to a reduced rate of cell proliferation and a blunted response to TGFß. These data confirm our hypothesis that PRDM16 is involved in processes crucial for normal palate development.

Keywords: Cleft palate, craniofacial, embryo, development 53. Probing Metal Binding To DNA And RNA Nucleobases With High-Resolution Photoelectron Spectroscopy Yang, Dong Sheng* S. A. Krasnokutski, C. Zhang, Y. Lei, J. S. Lee, A. Imberi, and D. –S. Yang*; Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky The presence of metal ions in the cell nucleus affects the formation, replication, and cleavage of DNA and RNA. Depending on the type and concentration, metal ions may stabilize the nucleic acid chain through charge neutralization or disrupt hydrogen bonds by attaching to nucleobases. The nucleobases present in DNA and RNA include cytosine, guanine, adenine, thymine, and uracil; each of these bases offers several different coordination sites for metal ions. The nature and site of metal binding influence base pairing and the course of genetic information transfer. In this project, we develop a novel approach to probe optimal metal locations around these nucleobases in an isolated environment, where interferences from other chemical species are removed. We use laserassisted reactions to prepare metal-nucleobase complexes in gaseous supersonic jets, mass spectrometry to measure the abundance and distribution of reaction products, and high-resolution photoelectron spectroscopy to search for electronic-

vibrational spectra. The outputs of this research include precise thermodynamic quantities, metal binding sites, electronic states and molecular structures. With the preliminary results from this KSEF grant, we have obtained a new research grant from the National Science Foundation. We have begun to publish the results in top journals for the fields of physical chemistry and chemical physics and at national and international meetings. We have also expanded training and educational opportunities to several future scientists.

Keywords: Pulsed-field ionization, photoelectron, and metal-nucleobase complexes 54. An In-Line Filter To Remove Aluminum From Intravenous Feeding Solutions Yokel, Robert* Wesley R. Harris, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Missouri St. Louis; Robert J. Kuhn, Department of Pharmacy Practice and Science,University of Kentucky; Christopher D. Spilling, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Missouri -St. Louis Solutions used for intravenous feeding contain potentially hazardous concentrations of aluminum (Al), which enters primarily as a contaminant in the calcium gluconate component solution. We are developing a flow-through filter device containing a chelator (ligand) that is immobilized on small polymer beads (resin). This device will remove Al from the contaminated calcium gluconate solution as it flows from its small volume parenteral storage vial through the filter into the bag containing the final intravenous (total parenteral nutrition [TPN]) admixture solution. TPN solutions are routinely given to neonates in intensive care units of hospitals. The effects of Al toxicity in this setting include impairment of cognitive development/function and a low-turnover bone disease. We have synthesized some novel chelators and immobilized some of them on a resin. Our current resins remove virtually all Al from simple aqueous solutions. We need to improve these immobilized chelators to be able to rapidly and more effectively remove Al from calcium gluconate solution. That work will be supported by NIH Phase I STTR and requested Kentucky SBIR-STTR Matching Funds Program awards. Additional potential applications of this technology include the removal of contaminating Al from TPN given to adults, intravenous calcium solutions, fluids used in dialysis, and soy-based infant formula. This technology can also be applied to the removal of other metals from solutions.

Keywords: Aluminum, medical device, total parenteral nutrition solutions 37

POSTER ABSTRACTS

55. Subtype-Selective Agonists Binding With Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors Zhan, Chang-Guo* Xiaoqin Huang, Fang Zheng, Xi Chen, Peter A. Crooks, Linda P. Dwoskin, Chang-Guo Zhan; Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky A variety of molecular modeling, docking, dynamics simulation, and first-principles electronic structure calculations were performed to study how the a4b2 and a7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs, members in a superfamily of ligand-gated ion channels) bind with different species of representative agonists, each of which are distinguished by different free bases and protonation states. The combined use of the calculated results allows the quantitation of equilibrium concentration distributions of the free ligand species and the corresponding microscopic ligand-receptor binding species, their pH-dependence, and their contributions to the phenomenological binding affinity. The predicted equilibrium concentration distributions, pKa values, absolute phenomenological binding affinities and their pH-dependence are all in good agreement with available experimental data, suggesting that the computational strategy from the microscopic binding species and affinities to the phenomenological binding affinity is reliable for studying nAChR-ligand binding. The general computational strategy of the â&#x20AC;&#x153;from-microscopic-tophenomenological bindingâ&#x20AC;? approach has been used to further study subtype-selective binding of 14 representative agonists with a4b2 and a7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) and the key factors affecting the subtype-selectivity have been identified. The fundamental insights obtained in the present study should be valuable for future rational design of potential therapeutic agents targeted to specific nAChR subtypes.

Keywords: nicotine, drug abuse, subtype-selective binding, modeling, computational design 56. Fungal Symbiosis In Rice Requires An Ortholog Of A Legume Common Symbiosis Gene Encoding A Ca2/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Zhu, Hongyan* Caiyan Chen, Muqiang Gao, Jinyuan Liu and Hongyan Zhu; Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, University of Kentucky (C.C., M.G., H.Z.); Department of Plant Pathology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853 (J.L.); University of Kentucky

In natural ecosystems, many plants are able to establish mutually beneficial symbioses with microorganisms. Of critical importance to sustainable agriculture are the symbioses formed between more than 80% of terrestrial plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and between legumes and nitrogen-fixing rhizobial bacteria. Interestingly, the two symbioses share overlapping signaling pathways in legumes, suggesting that the evolutionarily recent root nodule symbiosis may have acquired functions from the ancient AM symbiosis. The Medicago truncatula DMI3 (DOESN'T MAKE INFECTIONS3) gene (MtDMI3) and its orthologs in legumes are required for both bacterial and fungal symbioses.

MtDMI3 encodes a Ca2/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase (CCaMK) essential for the transduction of the Ca2 signal induced by the perception of Nod factors. Putative orthologs of MtDMI3 are also present in non-legumes, but their function in AM symbiosis has not been demonstrated in any non-legume species. Here, we combine reverse genetic approaches and a cross-species complementation test to characterize the function of the rice (Oryza sativa) ortholog of MtDMI3, namely, OsDMI3, in AM symbiosis. We demonstrate that OsDMI3 is not only required for AM symbiosis in rice but also is able to complement a M. truncatula dmi3 mutant, indicating an equivalent role of MtDMI3 orthologs in non-legumes.

Keywords: root symbioses, legume, non-legume HEALTH AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT 57. Video Games For Teaching Social Skills To Children With Autism Boman, Marty* Dr. Carrie Pritchard, Psychology Dr. Marty Boman; Special Instructional Programs, Western Kentucky University The objective of this pilot project is to develop and research a video game that teaches social skills to adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD).

This developmental disabilty makes aquisition of typical social skills, such as understanding emotions, communicating verbally and nonverbally, and adapting behaviors to meet varying situational demands difficult. The disorder is prevalent, affecting 1 in 150 people worldwide. Most interventions have focused on young children, which fail to keep the interest of older individuals. Few studies are available to examine the use of technology as an intervention tool, even though it is quite popular among adolescents. One video game 38

POSTER ABSTRACTS now exists to teach children to understand facial expressions. In comparison, our project may be the first to target complex cognitions involved in successful social behaviors. This video game involves development of an intervention that utilizes a technology of interest, and co-opts its motivational aspects to teach skills in areas of deficit. The game functions much like any other video game. For example, players earn points as they make choices during interactions with characters they meet. Each interaction targets cognitive processing that is fundamental to success in that social setting and planning skills that underlie all goal oriented behaviors. To date, game characters and scripts have been created and auditions are complete.

Edited scenes and instructions will be available to the programmer soon. In the future, we plan to seek federal research funding and a small business grant to develop fully functional versions of the game.

Keywords: Video games, Clinical intervention, Autism, Social Competence 58. Sample Entropy Tracks Changes in EEG Signal Structure With Sleep State Bruce, Eugene* Margaret Bruce (Biomedical Engineering), Swetha Vennelaganti (Biomedical Engineering), Blessy Mathew (Biomedical Engineering); University of Kentucky The regularity of EEG signals was compared between middle-aged (47.2 ± 2.0 yrs) and elderly (78.4 ± 3.8 yrs) female subjects in Wake (W), NREM stages 2 and 3 (S-2, S-3), and REM. Signals from C3A2 leads of healthy normal subjects, acquired from polysomnograms obtained from the Sleep Heart Health Study, were analyzed using both Sample Entropy (SaEn) and power spectral analysis (delta, theta, alpha, and beta frequency band powers). SaEn changed systematically and significantly (p<0.001) with sleep state in both age groups, following the relationships W > REM > S-2 > S-3. SaEn reflects the power spectrum of the EEG but also incorporates additional information that is not obvious from the power spectrum. Results suggest that SaEn could be a useful index for automated sleep staging.

Keywords: sleep staging, polysomnography, power spectrum 59. Optimizing High Energy Phosphate Delivery For Clinical Applications Ehringer, William(1)*, Candice Thomas(1), Steven Moberly(1), Hans Sollinger(2), Deborah Hullett(2), Juan Sebastian Danobeitia(2), William Parsley(3), Jerry Cooley(4); Department of Physiology and

Biophysics, University of Louisville1; Department of Transplantation, University of Louisville, University of Wisconsin-Madison, North Carolina Dermatological High energy phosphates are the source of chemical bond energy used by all living matter to maintain viability and function. During periods of hypoxia or ischemia, the production of high energy phosphates by cells decreases, resulting in metabolic rearrangement, decreased cellular function, and potentially death. Over the years several approaches to maintaining high energy phosphates in cells during hypoxia have been explored. While many of these approaches have had some degree of success, the hypoxic damage or reperfusion injury to these tissues is still substantial. Our lab developed a different approach to maintaining high energy phosphate levels in hypoxic tissue: Deliver adenosine-5’-triphosphate (ATP) to cells using fusogenic lipid vesicles (VitaSol). VitaSol has demonstrated efficacy in wound healing, organ preservation, hemorrhagic shock, tissue preservation, and cell preservation. VitaSol production has continued to develop and is currently ready for human trials in islet cell preservation, hair transplantation, and kidney transplantation. In human islet cell studies, the addition of VitaSol maintained cell viability and decreased caspase-3 activity under rotenone poisoning. In addition, the use of VitaSol in human hair transplant studies has shown significant increases in pohl-pinkus hair retention, greater hair follicle viability, and faster regrowth. Ongoing dog kidney preservation studies being conducted at the University of Wisconsin with VitaSol will be discussed. Because VitaSol has costly components, has a limited shelf-life, and can have some side-effects, reformulation activity has continued. New approaches to high energy phosphate delivery have yielded significant reductions in cost, increased shelf-life, and enhanced efficacy and will be discussed.

Keywords: Energy, ischemia, hypoxia, wound healing 60. Multicenter Trial Of Chlorinated Polyethylene Elastomer For Maxillofacial Prosthetics Gettleman, Lawrence* Lawrence Gettleman, Sudarat Kiat-amnuay, Mark S. Chambers, Rhonda F. Jacobs, James. D. Anderson, Dennis A. Johnston, Rachel A. Sheppard, and Gilbert S. Haugh; University of Louisville School of Dentistry and Outcomes Research Institute, Louisville; University of Texas Dental Branch and M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, 39

POSTER ABSTRACTS Houston; Toronto Sunnybrook Regional Cancer Centre, Toronto; and Baylor University, Waco, Texas Thermoplastic chlorinated polyethylene elastomer (CPE) is much less expensive than silicone rubber and is molded by laying up colored layers of CPE in a gypsum/polymer flask and heating under pressure to 110°C, followed by surface coloring. A controlled, randomized, prospective, double-blind, single crossover, multicenter Phase III clinical trial was performed to determine the noninferiority of CPE compared to silicone rubber (80% Silastic Adhesive A/20% MDX4-4210A). Of 42 patients enrolled, 71% were male; 82% Caucasian, 2% Asian, 2% Hispanic, 1% African-American; mean age 62 years; 75% had cancer, 14% trauma, 11% birth defects. They wore each prosthesis for 4 months in random order.

Patients rated satisfaction with prostheses on a 0-10 scale (10 = completely satisfied). Many other evaluations were made, including quality of life measures. Twenty-eight patients completed the study (22 at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, 6 at Toronto Sunnybrook Regional Cancer Centre); of these, 68% used silicone prostheses previously.

Fourteen patients needed ear prostheses, 10 nose, and 4 orbital (extraoral, full or partial). Overall, patients rated the silicone prosthesis higher than the CPE (8.4±2.2 vs. 6.2±3.1 [mean±SD]). Previous prosthesis users had a stronger preference for silicone, while the 9 patients new to maxillofacial prostheses rated the two materials the same (difference=0.0, p=1.00). Conclusions: Previous users had a strong preference towards silicone, the material with which they were familiar. New users, i.e., those with no previous experience with prostheses, scored the prostheses made with silicone and CPE exactly the same. Supported by cooperative agreement U01 DE014543 from the NIDCR/NIH. Keywords: maxillofacial prosthetics, thermoplastic elastomers, biomaterials, head and neck cancer, cancer rehabilitation, clinical trials, experimental design, 61. Surreptitious Sensing Of Blood Alcohol Content: Remote Near-Infrared Spectroscopic (NIRS) Imaging And Laser Speech Detection Lodder, Robert A.* Thaddaeus Hannel, David Link and Robert A. Lodder*; Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky In this work two noninvasive methods for the determination of breath alcohol content (BrAC) were studied. A validation study involving five human subjects was done to assess the supposition that

molecular factor computing (MFC) near-infrared spectroscopic (NIRS) hyperspectral imaging and laser interferometry speech detection could be used to noninvasively detect BrAC. MFC NIRS imaging measurements for standard errors of prediction (SEP) for a global model relative to blood alcohol were 7.5 mg/dL (0.0075%) and r2 = 0.98. The laser speech detection measured SEPs for a global model relative to blood alcohol at 16.0 mg/dL (0.016%) and r2 = 0.82, however individual SEPs were much lower.

Keywords: BrAC, BAC, interferometer, integrated sensing and processing, molecular factor computing 62. Chemical Genetics Application Of AG-001 In Gliosis Mohan, Royce* Royce Mohan (Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences), Paola Bargagna-Mohan (Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences), Riya Paranthan (Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences), Neviana Dimova (Neurology), Franca Cambi (Neurology), Kyung Bo Kim (Pharmaceutical Sciences); Univerity of Kentucky We have developed the small molecule inhibitor AG001 as a chemical genetic probe of its binding target vimentin, an intermediate filament (IF) protein expressed in endothelial cells. Now, exploiting the chemical analog of AG-001 (ProteoTAG-001) as a proteomic tool, we demonstrate that vimentin and its homolog glial fibrillar acidic protein (GFAP) coisolate from brain astrocytes when affinity purified using ProteoTAG-001. Importantly, vimentin and GFAP share a striking pattern of overexpression in reactive astrocytes during gliosis, which is an insidious pathogenic process that occurs as a result of brain and spinal cord traumatic injury and in several leading CNS disorders. A common thread also among major eye diseases, including agerelated macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and retinal detachment is the incidence of retinal gliosis. To investigate regulatory control by IFs on angiogenic and gliosis disease states we exploited a mouse model of ocular alkali burn injury that features corneal angiogenesis and retinal gliosis. We demonstrate that AG-001 potently targets vimentin and downregulates its expression and causes fragmentation of GFAP in activated Muller cells of the retina in vivo. This drug-induced phenotype in wild-type mice is mimicked in vimentin-deficient mice in a specific anatomic and spatial manner during gliosis, which is important because deficiency of vimentin and GFAP are known to protect against gliosis in several experimental models of brain and retinal injuries. We further 40

POSTER ABSTRACTS corroborate our in vivo findings in brain astrocytes isolated from wild type and vimentin-deficient mice and show drug-induced downregulation of soluble GFAP and vimentin expression in wild type astrocytes, whereas GFAP is resistant to AG-001 activity in vimentin-deficient cells. Given that gliosis and angiogenesis account for a huge economic burden on society as they present in clinically diverse disorders, an understanding of the pivotal role of IFs in these diseases using the chemical genetic tools we have developed can help shape new classes of targeted therapies for cancers, inflammation, neurotrauma, CNS malignancies and retinal disorders.

Keywords: Angiogenesis, Gliosis, inhibitor, chemical genetics, intermediate filaments 63. Epigenetics And Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Mukhopadhyay, Partha* Partha Mukhopadhyay*, Cynthia L. Webb, Robert M. Greene and M. Michele Pisano; Department of Molecular, Cellular and Craniofacial Biology, University of Louisville Birth Defects Center, University of Louisville Consumption of alcohol during pregnancy leads to fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), a constellation of congenital anomalies characterized by craniofacial dysmorphology, growth retardation, brain damage and other abnormalities. In the United States, FAS occurs with a frequency of 1 to 3 cases per 1000 livebirths and is one of the leading causes of reduced cognitive function. The annual cost of providing treatment to children with FAS is $321 million. Despite its prevalence, the biological mechanisms of alcohol-induced developmental toxicity, and the genes that influence developmental sensitivity to alcohol exposure have not been clearly identified. Recent experimental findings imply that, apart from genetic factors, epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation might be associated with the etiology of varied developmental abnormalities including FAS. The global hypothesis under investigation in the current research project is that prenatal alcohol exposure can disrupt the normal methylation state of specific candidate genes, in embryonic cranial neural folds and contribute to development of FAS. To date we have determined that in utero exposure of mouse embryos to ethanol (alcohol) led to a 14% decrease in global DNA methylation in gestation day 9 mouse embryos. In addition, treatment of mouse embryonic fibroblasts with ethanol resulted in differential regulation of genes â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the expression of which is important for normal cranio/facial development. Altogether, these results indicate that in utero alcohol exposure can

induce changes in global DNA methylation in developing embryonic cranial tissue and that alcohol treatment can lead to differential regulation of genes in cells of the developing embryo.

Keywords: Fetal, Alcohol, Epigenetics, DNA, Methylation, Mouse, Embryo 64. Progress Towards Cariporide Analogs For Sodium-Proton Exchange Inhibition Palandoken, Hasan* Jessica Moore1, Mark Graves, II1, Jacob A. Vervynckt1, William Harley2, Fredric A. Gorin2 and Hasan Palandoken1*; 1 Western Kentucky University, Department of Chemistry; 2 University of California, Davis, Center for Neuroscience More than 200,000 people in the United States are diagnosed with a primary or metastatic brain tumor annually. The life expectancy for these individuals is approximately 9-12 months from the time of diagnosis. This poor prognosis is due to the ineffectiveness of existing therapies (e.g., chemotherapy and radiotherapy) against brain cancer, where the problem is the inability to differentiate cancer cells from healthy cells.

Currently, there is no curative therapy for brain cancer. Thus, the field is in great need for cancer cell-selective therapies. Relative to healthy brain tissue, the heightened metabolism of brain cancer cells (e.g., malignant gliomas) increases their reliance the ion transport proteins, specifically sodium-proton (NHE) and sodium-calcium (NCX) exchangers. The inhibition of these cell surface proteins disrupts the intricate pH and ion balances within cancer cells to a much greater extent than in normal cells, and this leads to glioma cell death.

Consequently, NHE and NCX are excellent molecular targets for brain cancer therapy. Although potent NHE/NCX inhibitor drugs are known, the delivery of these compounds to poorly vascularized tissues such as the necrotic center of a brain tumor remains to be a fundamental impediment. Currently, we are exploring a prodrug approach to address the delivery challenges. Preliminary studies towards our prodrug approach to inhibit cell surface ion exchange as a selective brain cancer therapy will be discussed.

Keywords: Brain cancer therapy, glioma, cell surface ion exchange inhibitors 65. Development Of A Plant Based Antiviral Compound For Herpes Simplex Virus Sahi, Shivendra*; Biology Department, Western Kentucky University 41

POSTER ABSTRACTS Herpes is caused by the Herpes Simplex Viruses type 1 (HSV-1) and type 2 (HSV-2). The World Health Organization estimates that in the USA alone, 40 to 60 million people (ages 12 and older) are HSV infected. In developing countries, HSV infection can vary from 2-74% depending upon age, gender, urban verses rural areas, etc. (WHO 2006). Herpes can cause painful genital sores in many adults, and its infection can be severe in people with suppressed immune systems. Herpes can also make people more susceptible to HIV infection (CDC Fact Sheet, May 2004). Presently, there is no direct treatment that can cure herpes, but antiviral medications have been used to shorten and prevent outbreaks. Thus, our laboratory is focusing on the plant-based pharmaceutical enterprise devoted to the development and management of effective Herpes viral infections. We are currently developing a plantbased compound to treat viral infections. Based on early antiviral efficacy data this product offers the promise of developing a new therapeutic drug for oral or topical applications for HSV infection. Our extensive isolation protocol has resulted in fractions with maximum anti-HSV activity. Currently efforts are focused on isolating and characterizing the active compound(s).

Keywords: antiviral, Herpes 66. Nanoparticle-Induced Dysfunction Of Brain Endothelial Cells And Disruption Of The Blood-Brain Barrier Lei Chen, Michal Toborek*; University of Kentucky Medical Center Nanotechnology uses engineered materials or devices at the nanometer scale, typically ranging from 1 to ~100 nanometers. Nanotechnology approaches are used for treatment, diagnosis, monitoring, and controlling of biological systems.

However, nanoparticles preserve high surface reactivity and may have negative health and environmental impacts. Indeed, evidence indicates that MNPs can enter the brain and induce neurotoxic effects. Therefore, potential toxic effects of manufactured nanoparticles (MNPs) are the emerging concern in human health. The present study focused on the hypothesis that MNPs can affect the integrity of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and that these effects can contribute to MNP neurotoxicity. The key structural elements of the BBB are tight junctions which seal together the neighboring endothelial cells. To study the effects of MNP on the integrity of the BBB, rats were infused with aluminum oxide nanoparticles (between 8 and 12 nm in size) at the dose of 12.5 mg/kg as an ~

0.6% dispersion in water. Rats were sacrificed 20 h post nanoparticle infusion, the brains were fixed, sliced, and stained for expression of tight junction proteins, such as occludin, claudins, junctional adhesion molecules (JAMs) and zonula occludens (ZO-1 and ZO-2). Treatment with aluminum oxide nanoparticles markedly reduced expression of tight junction proteins as determined by immunocytochemistry. These results provide direct evidence that exposure to aluminum oxide MNP can result in the disruption of the BBB. In addition, disruption of tight junctions appears to the main mechanism of this influence. Supported by Kentucky Science and Engineering Foundation (KSEF-07-RDE010), MH072567, and NS39254.

Keywords: Nanotechnology, blood-brain barrier, neurotoxicity, tight junctions 67. ATP Delivery Enhanced Skin Wound Healing In Diabetic Animals Intracellular Delivery Of ATP Enhanced Healing Process In Full-Thickness Skin Wounds In Diabetic Animals Wang, Jianpu*, Ming Li, Sufan Chien; Department of Surgery, University of Louisville We hypothesized that intracellular delivery of ATP may provide a healthier environment for accelerated healing of wounds, not only in normal, but also in diabetic animals. 1. ATP-encapsulated lipid vesicles (ATP-vesicles) were composed of soy PC/DOTAP (50:1), 10 mM Mg-ATP, trehalose/soy PC (2:1), and 10 mM KH2PO4. 2. Diabetes mellitus was induced by intravenous injection of alloxan (100mg/kg). Rabbits were considered diabetic when the fasting blood glucose concentrations were greater than 300 mg/dl. 3. On 10 rabbits, one ear was rendered ischemic. Four circular full-thickness wounds were created on each ear. ATP-vesicles or saline was used and wounds were covered. Dressing was changed daily. 4. On ischemic ear, mean healing time was 19.3±4.2 days for saline-treated wounds vs.

15.3±2.8 days for ATP-vesicles-treated wounds (p=0.0043). On non-ischemic ear, mean healing time was 16.7±3.8 days for saline-treated wounds vs. 13.7±4.9 days for ATP-vesicles-treated wounds (p=0.0231). 5. Extremely fast granular tissue growth was found in ATP-vesicles-treated wounds. It occurred only one-day after surgery on non-ischemic ears and lagged behind 1-2 days on ischemic ears.

6. In a few immunohistochemistry stained samples, more CD31 positive cells appeared in ATP-vesiclestreated wounds than those treated by normal saline.

7. Intracellular delivery of ATP accelerated healing process of full-thickness skin wounds in diabetic 42

POSTER ABSTRACTS rabbit ears. This technique may have significant clinical potential in wound treatments. (This study was supported in part by NIH grants HL64186, DK74566, AR52984, UofL CEG54049, and Novera OICB060423.

Keywords: ATP, diabetes, wound healing 68. Generalized Diffusion Simulation-Based Tractography For Mapping Human Brain Zhuang, Qi* Jun Zhang; Department of Computer Science, University of Kentucky; Brian T. Gold; Department of Anatomy and Neurobilogy, University of Kentucky The overall goal of this project is to develop innovative mathematical models, sophisticated numerical techniques, and tailored experiments, to demonstrate the feasibility of combining diffusion simulation-based fiber tractography (DST) with generalized diffusion tensor (GDT) model on high angular diffusion weighted imaging (HARDI) datasets, to noinvasively in vivo reconstruct major and secondary white matter fiber tracts (WMFTs) of human brain. This study will develop new neuroinformatics concepts and analysis tools to advance white matter fiber tractography based on the diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) modality, and to guide the directions of developing next generation high fidelity human brain white matter tractography.

Standard diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DT-MRI) based on the 2nd order tensor model has limitations in its ability to distinguish complex fiber tracts. Current version of DST is unable to reconstruct small complex WMFTs that are important for mapping human brain connectivity.

We propose to use GDT to better model the diffusion process in human brain and to use DST to more accurately simulate the underlying physical diffusion process of human brain. The combination of these two superior technologies forms the framework of generalized diffusion simulation-based tractography (GDST). The hypothesis of this work is that robust fiber tracking algorithms such as DST can extract more information from the DWI data with high angular resolution. Thus, GDST advances fiber tractography in both fronts simultaneously more sensitive tracking algorithm applied to higher resolution data, compared to standard streamlinebased tracking algorithm applied to standard DT-MRI data. The specific aims of this project are in (1) the development of mathematical models to incorporate DST with GDT, and (2) the development of numerical techniques and software tools to implement GDST. The success of this project will have high impact on the human brain mapping

research, as well as on the possible clinical studies related to certain brain white matter disorders.

Keywords: Neuroimaging, Diffusion tensor imaging, Human brain, White matter, Tractography INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES AND COMMUNICATIONS 69. Patterns For data modeling Antony, Solomon*; Computer Science and Information Systems, Murray State University Patterns capture abstractions of situations that occur frequently in conceptual data modeling. Effective use of data modeling patterns can lead to high quality designs and productivity gains. Data modeling patterns are widely available in the public domain, yet there is a lack of studies on usability of such patterns. In this exploratory study we examine the usability of a data modeling patterns. Effective use of patterns presupposes the usersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; ability to find similarities between task and pattern. We present and evaluate some heuristics for finding the similarities. The results of the empirical evaluation indicate that the heuristics are useful and can lead to accurate solutions. Future research as well as implications for researchers and practitioners is also discussed.

Keywords: Data modeling, systems analysis, software patterns 70. Dynamic, Distributed Real-Time System For Geosystems Health Monitoring Bryson, Lindsey* Tom Lutz, April Barnes; Department of Civil Engineering, University of Kentucky Each year, the U.S. and countries around the world experiences failures of various geosystems as a result of natural or manmade changes to the static equilibrium state of the systems. These geosystems include all geotechnical-based systems such as cut and natural slopes, earth and earth retention structures, embankments, and foundation systems.

Failure of these geotechnical based-systems often results in great human suffering and can cause billions of dollars in losses. Many of the mechanisms associated with geosystem failure routinely occur under certain change conditions such as changes in the groundwater condition or increases in the surcharge. Thus, the initiation of a particular geosystem failure can be correlated to specific environmental (natural and manmade) changes.

43

POSTER ABSTRACTS Geosystem health monitoring (GHM) involves temporal and spatial assessment of system response during manmade or natural environmental change events. From those assessments, forward predictions of geosystem response are developed which can later be used to provide warnings if the system response exceeds systems limits (e.g. shear stress increases due to a newly applied surcharge load exceeds the shear capacity of a particular embankment). Research is required to develop a reliable and cost effective health monitoring system that has the capability of real-time remote monitoring of geosystem response to dynamic changes to the static equilibrium state. A GHM system based on wireless technology is suggested as such a system.

Keywords: MEMS, Sensors, Mote, inclinometer, critical state soil mechanics 71. Multimedia Streaming Using Overlay Networks Fei, Zongming* Mengkun Yang, Ping Yi; Department of Computer Science, University of Kentucky In this project, we propose to use overlay multicast (also known as application-layer multicast) as the basic structure for multimedia streaming. Rather than letting all users get the multimedia content from the origin server, we establish a delivery tree among the application end points. This will reduce the load on the origin server and can make the streaming content available to a large population.

One key problem that has not been solved is the failures or unexpected departures of application end points. Once non-leaf application end points leave the delivery tree, all downstream nodes will be affected. We investigated the problem and explored various solution approaches. We designed and evaluated fast failure detection and recovery techniques to minimize the disruptive effects of these unexpected events.

Keywords: overlay multicast, resiliency, failure detection 72. Title: __ Hu, Patrick*, Liping Xue; Advanced Dynamics Corporation The computational tools for Fluid Dynamics, Structural Dynamics as well as Control have been extensively developed individually in the last two decades, such as CFD and CSD tools. The design of a complex mechanical system (i.e. an aircraft, spacecraft, marine ship, automotive), however, not only requires conduct the analysis and evaluation for

each individual discipline, but also requires the analysis and evaluation of interaction among all associated disciplines. In addition, the full order simulation will take several weeks or even months, preventing such tools in efficient use in complex mechanical system design. Advanced Dynamics Corporation has pioneered the development of integrated multidisciplinary tool sets that not only have the capability of solving the full order individual disciplinary problem, but also have the full capability of simulating the interaction among all associated disciplines. The other important features of ADIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s software tools include the variable-fidelity simulation capability so that low-to-mid fidelity can be utilized at the initial to middle stages of the design and the high-fidelity can be used for design verification and validation at the final stage. In this Poster we showcase ADIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s software applications to demonstrate these important features and capabilities Keywords: Aerodynamics, Structure Dyanmics, Control, Computational Fluid Dynamics, Aeroelasticity 73. A Sixth Order Finite Difference Computation With Multigrid Method And Extrapolation for 2D Poisson Equation Wang, Yin*, Jun Zhang; Department of Computer Science, University of Kentucky We develop a sixth order finite difference discretization strategy to solve the two dimensional Poisson equation, which is based on the fourth order compact discretization, multigrid method, Richardson extrapolation technique, and an operator based interpolation scheme. We use multigrid VCycle procedure to build our multiscale multigrid algorithm, which is similar to the full multigrid method (FMG). The multigrid computation yields the fourth order accurate solution on both the fine grid and the coarse grid. A sixth order accurate coarse grid solution is computed by using the Richardson extrapolation technique. Then we apply our operator based interpolation scheme to get the sixth order accurate solution on the fine grid. Numerical experiments are conducted to show the accuracy and the efficiency of our new method, compared to Sun-Zhang's sixth order Richardson extrapolation compact (REC) discretization strategy using Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) method and the standard fourth order compact difference (FOC) scheme using a multigrid method.

Keywords: Poisson equation, compact difference scheme, multigrid method, Richardson extrapolation 44

POSTER ABSTRACTS 74. Bipartite Graph Based Dynamic Spectrum Allocation For Wireless Mesh Networks Yang, Jianjun*, Zongming Fei; Department of Computer Science, University of Kentucky We propose a new bipartite-graph based model and design an channel allocation algorithm for dynamic spectrum allocation for wireless mesh networks. It considers both bandwidth utilization and starvation problems. Our solution is based on using augmenting path to find a matching in the bipartitegraph and can minimize starvation and then maximize the bandwidth utilization. The simulations demonstrate that our algorithm can reduce the starvation ratio and improve the bandwidth utilization, compared with previous conflict-graph based algorithms.

Keywords: spectrum allocation, channel assignment, multimedia streaming 75. The Relationship Between The Matrix Features And The Performance Of Preconditioned Iterative Solvers Han, Dianwei*, Jun Zhang; Computer Science Department, University of Kentucky Many important scientific and engineering applications require the use of linear solvers for solving large-scale linear equations. Generally there are two classes of methods available to solve the sparse linear systems. The first class is the direct solution methods, represented by the Gauss elimination method. The second class is the iterative solution methods, of which the preconditioned Krylov subspace methods are considered to be the most effective ones currently available in this field.

The sparsity structure and the numerical value distribution which are considered as features of the sparse matrices may have important effect on the iterative solution of linear systems. We first extract the matrix features, and then preconditioned iterative methods are used to the linear system. Our experiments show that a few features that may affect, positively or negatively, the solving status of a sparse matrix with the level-based reconditioners Keywords: Iterative methods, Preconditioner, features of matrices MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ADVANCED MANUFACTURING 76. Laser Spectroscopic Characterization Of Transition Metal-Aromatic Compounds

Yang, Dong Sheng* B. R. Sohnlein, Y. Lei, J. S. Lee, X. Wang, D. Hensley, and D. â&#x20AC;&#x201C;S. Yang*; Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky Metal-aromatic compounds are widely used as catalysts in organic synthesis. A catalyst is a substance that initiates a desirable chemical reaction or speeds up a reaction that would otherwise be too slow to be economical. However, current catalyst development is still carried out by trial and error, and rational design of new catalysts with predictable properties is a long-term goal requiring both basic and applied research. This KSEF-sponsored project focused on the fundamental aspects of the catalyst development and aimed on a quantitative understanding of how metals activate organic molecules and convert them into valuable products.

We studied short-lived metal-aromatic complexes that are potentially active agents or key intermediates in chemical synthesis and catalysis.

We developed a novel photoelectron instrument that provides spectral resolution of two orders of magnitude better than conventional photoelectron methods. There is only one such kind of the instrument in Kentucky and are very few around the world. This work has opened up a new area for high-resolution photoelectron spectroscopic applications in metal systems and enhanced Kentuckyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s emerging international reputation in this field. With the preliminary results from this grant, we obtained additional hundreds of thousands research dollars from the National Science Foundation and the American Chemical Society, published numerous papers in the highest-rated journals for our research areas, and gave many presentations at national and international meetings and research institutions. With this grant, we trained several postdoctoral, graduate and undergraduate students in modern physical chemistry and chemical physics.

Keywords: Laser spectroscopy, zero electron kinetic energy, and metal-aromatic complexes 77. Thermal Transport Induced By ElectronBeam Heating At Nanoscale Menguc, M. Pinar*, Basil T. Wong; Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Kentucky We present the numerical modeling effort in simulating electron-beam heating of a material.

Electron-beam transport equation is solved using the Monte Carlo (MC) method where the trajectories of electrons are determined following the elastic and inelastic scattering probabilities. The penetrating electrons originated from an electron beam transfer 45

POSTER ABSTRACTS large amount of kinetic energy to electrons inside the workpiece causing temperature of electrons to elevate. “Hot” electrons then interact with the “cold” phonons inside the material. Subsequently, both electrons and phonons reach thermal equilibrium.

We have developed e-beam Monte Carlo (MC) computer codes to predict the amount of electron density, momentum, and energy deposited inside the workpiece. We have also successfully coupled the electron-energy deposition distribution with the Fourier law and the two-temperature model (TTM) to predict the temperature distribution inside the material. According to the simulation with the Fourier law, we estimated the power required (~0.10.5W) from an electron source with focused area of less than 100 nm radius in order to initialize evaporation locally at nanoseconds. The simulation with TTM has shown that the Fourier law is applicable if heating time is much larger than tens of pico-seconds. More simulation effort is currently being carried out in coupling MC results with the electron-phonon hydrodynamic equations to include the electrical and thermal responses of the workpiece.

Keywords: __ 78. Microstructure-Property Relations In Osmium-Ruthenium Coatings For Porous Tungsten Dispenser Cathodes Balk, Thomas John*, Wen-Chung Li; University of Kentucky The research objective of this project is an improved understanding of the microstructure-property relationships in osmium-ruthenium (OsRu) coatings that are used in porous tungsten dispenser cathodes for high-density electron emission. By systematically investigating the effects of microstructure (including OsRu film thickness, texture and grain size) on the composition and performance of actual cathodes, the PI will provide a microstructure-based understanding of OsRu film coatings. A specific outcome of this research project is a new set of parameters for the deposition of improved OsRu coatings. Semicon Associates, located in Lexington, KY, is the world leader in cathode production for military and space applications. They manufacture over 20,000 cathodes annually at their Lexington facility, thereby representing 75% of the world market share in cathodes, and generating over $9M in annual sales. The dispenser cathodes manufactured by Semicon operate at a brightness temperature (this is the temperature measured by an optical pyrometer, assuming black-body radiation) of 1050°CB and must provide reliable

electron emission over lifetimes that can reach tens of thousands of hours. Because reliability is of paramount importance, especially in military and space-based applications where repair is not an option, designers “over-engineer” their cathodes to insure reliable operation. However, there is little understanding as to why cathodes ultimately fail and little knowledge of microstructure-property relationships in the cathode materials. A systematic study of the effects of film thickness, grain size and texture on the composition and emission characteristics of annealed OsRu coatings is needed to develop scientific guidelines for further advancement in cathode performance. This work will be performed in close collaboration with Semicon Associates, who will provide materials and technological guidance, and will also test dispenser cathodes coated with OsRu according to the optimized conditions identified in this project.

Keywords: osmium, ruthenium, thin film, coating, cathode 79. Impression Creep Of A Sn60Pb40 Alloy: The Effect Of Electric Current Chen, Rong* Fuqian Yang; Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky Solder joints provide electrical and mechanical interconnections in microelectronic circuits and devices. The mechanical behavior of the solder joints plays an important role in determining the reliability and lifetime of microelectronic devices.

Using the impression technique, the effect of electric current on the creep deformation of a Sn60Pb40 alloy was studied in the temperature range of 50 ~ 110 °C and under the punching stress of 9.7 ~ 110 MPa. During the test, a constant DC electric current passed through the sample, which introduced electromechanical interaction. A steady state creep was observed under the action of the DC electric current. The steady state impression velocity increased with the increase of the electric current; and the stress dependence of the impression velocity followed the Eyring’s relation. The apparent activation energy decreased linearly with the square of the electric current due to the increase of atomic mobility driven by the electric current.

Keywords: impression creep, solder, electric current, activation energy 80. Nanoindentation Of Zinc Sulfide Dang, Hongmei* Hongmei Dang and Fuqian Yang Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky 46

POSTER ABSTRACTS The nanoindentation of ZnS was studied for the indentation loads in the range of 25µN to 3000µN. Both the reduced contact modulus and the indentation hardness decreased with the increase in the indentation load from 200µN to 3000µN, while the residual plastic depth and the plastic energy dissipated in an indentation cycle increased with the increase in the indentation load. The effect of white light on the indentation deformation of ZnS was also evaluated. For the indentation load larger than 2000µN, there was no significant difference in the hardness, the reduced contact modulus, residual plastic depth and the plastic energy between the results without the white light and those exposed to the white light. This is likely due to the dominant effect of mechanical stress on local indentation deformation at large indentation loads.

Keywords: Nanoindentation Zinc Sulfide 81. Laser Spectroscopy Of Ultra Cold Molecular Ions Gharaibeh, Mohammed* Mohammed Gharaibeh, Fumie Sunahori, Xiaopeng Zhang, Yong Shi, Dennis Clouthier: Department of Chemistry, University of Kentucky; Bruno deHarak; Department of Physics, University of Kentucky Molecular ions are of great practical importance in the etching and fabrication of semiconductors, in materials science, and in advanced manufacturing processes. We are using laser methods to study the electronic spectra of a variety of molecular ions.

These studies will provide sensitive nonintrusive methods for detecting and characterizing ions and will establish the necessary database required for remote sensing of these species in real-world applications. We have succeeded in obtaining spectra of the HCP+, DCP+, Cl2+ and CO2+ ions and have determined the precise molecular structure of HCP+. We are also developing new methods for producing intense sources of ions in the gas phase.

Keywords: Spectroscopy, Molecular ions.

82. Graphene Nanoelectronics Gibson, Heather*, Antonis Andriotis; Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, Crete, Greece; Madhu Menon, Heather Gibson; Center for Computational Sciences, University of Kentucky; nstitute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, Center for Computational Sciences The electronic transport properties of three-terminal graphene nanoribbon T-junctions are investigated

using a quantum tight binding molecular dynamics scheme. The transport properties are found to depend very sensitively on the geometric features of the branches of the junctions. This dependence is even more pronounced than the corresponding dependence in the case of T-shaped single wall carbon nanotubes. This is attributed to the strong dependence of the conductivity of the nanoribbons on their chirality, width and length. An additional factor that influences the conductivity of the Tjunction nanoribbons is associated with the junction itself; i.e., the way the branches are interconnected.

Keywords: molecular electronics, molecular dynamics, graphene 83. Spatial-Phase Locked Electron-Beam Lithography For Nanomanufacturing Hastings, J. Todd* Y. Yang (1), C. Samantaray (1), Euclid Moon (2), Henry Smith (2), Francesco Stellacci (2), James Spallas (3), Lawrence Muray (3), and J. Todd Hastings (1); (1) University of Kentucky, (2) Massachusetts Institute of Technology, (3) Novelx Inc. The need to cost-effectively mass produce active nano-systems with nanometer-level accuracy and repeatability represents a critical challenge facing nanomanufacturing. In response, we are developing close-loop controlled, microscale electron optical systems that perform high-throughput, parallel nanomanufacturing with one nanometer accuracy and precision. Two fundamental innovations make this possible: (1) closed-loop control of electron beam position, size, and shape based on the signal from a reference grid on the workpiece and (2) arrays of microscale electron-optical columns that for high-speed parallel patterning. The reference grid is a nanoscale analogue of graph paper for precision drafting. The electron-beam micro-columns resemble an array of pens; each of which writes independently with sub-10nm line width. Combining the two innovations requires investigation of new high speed, parallel, signal processing algorithms, the development of new materials for the nanoscale reference grid, and development of nano-accurate grid replication techniques. Key recent advances include development and implementation of a new phase-locking algorithm that allows arbitrary beam deflection (rather than television-like raster scanning), an algorithm that allows closed-loop control of beam size and shape as well as position, a single board feedback control system that is readily adaptable for multicolumn systems, and investigation of new grid materials that provide high 47

POSTER ABSTRACTS signal-to-noise ratio and thus high-precision pattern placement.

Keywords: nano-manufacuring, nano-fabrication, electron-beam lithography, electron optics 84. Novel Method For Synthesis And Integration Of Intelligent Polymer Networks With X,Y And Z Spatial Control At The MicroAnd Nanoscale Hilt, J. Zach*, Dipti Biswal, Hariharasudhan Chirra; Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky The goal of this project was to develop novel methods to integrate intelligent polymer networks with devices (e.g., silicon, glass, gold, and polymer) with micro- and nanoscale control. These methods enable for the fabrication of device platforms harnessing the unique abilities of these polymer networks, such as diagnostic devices, therapeutic devices, microarrays, and clinic-on-a-chip devices.

Specifically, photolithography procedures were utilized to create silicon masters with microscale features, which have been used to mold elastomeric poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) stamps with corresponding microscale features. For integration with silicon or gold, these stamps were inked with organosilane coupling agents or alkanethiols, respectively, that modify the surface with desired functionality. For patterning reactions, the surface were modified to control reaction spatially (e.g., patterned initiator molecules), and then, the modified substrates were coated with monomer solutions. The microstamping provides in-plane spatial control (X and Y) over the polymeric structure. For Z control, the extent of reaction was controlled by varying the reaction time, and, thus, this allowed for the thickness of the polymer to be tailored.

Keywords: Polymer, Hydrogel, Microdevice, Nanotechnology, Sensor, Drug Delivery 85. Establishing The Influence Of Drill Materials, Drill Geometry And Coatings On Drill-Wear And Drilling Performance For Sustainable Dry Drilling On Mars Jawahir, I.S.*, O.W. Dillon, Jr., K.E. Rouch, R.F. Hamade, Sandeep Manthri; University of Kentucky Planetary exploration missions to Mars aim to obtain samples and possibly return them to Earth for more thorough examination. The main objective of this research is to provide the requisite groundwork towards the development of improved and sustainable drills for subsurface drilling applications

on Mars with the goal of obtaining samples.

Therefore, the drill bit used for Martian drilling must have the ability to penetrate a variety of surface and sub-surface conditions including ice, sedimentary rocks and igneous rocks (e.g., basalt). Potentially, excessive tool-wear can be detrimental to the success of such a mission and, therefore, must be minimized. This research utilized a drill configuration using four polycrystalline diamond (PCD) inserts, and produced preliminary data on tool-wear at varying drilled depths in hard basalt rock. Two modes of tool-wear were monitored: flank wear and cutting edge wear. Consequently, the wear data was used to fit a mathematical model that could describe the tool's wear progression as a function of rock hardness, tool geometry, as well as drilling process parameters (spindle speed and drill feed). Also developed were expressions of specific wear coefficients. Preliminary thrust force and torque data was collected, and was used to optimize the drilling process and the drill geometry for increasing toollife, thus enhancing the sustainability of drilling operations on Mars Keywords: Mars, drilling, wear, sustainability 86. Novel Polymeric Membrane Materials For The Removal Of Carbon Dioxide From Gas Mixtures Kalika, Douglass* Douglass S. Kalika; Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky Rubbery copolymer networks based on crosslinked poly(ethylene oxides) have been investigated for use as gas separation membranes. These polymers, which are specifically formulated to preferentially transport polar or quadrupolar molecules over nonpolar light gases, are effective for the separation of carbon dioxide (CO2) from mixtures with hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen or methane. Relevant industrial processes include the selective removal of CO2 from hydrogen following the steam reforming of hydrocarbons, the separation of CO2 from oxygen for food packaging purposes and the removal of CO2 from natural gas streams. The goal of this project was to investigate the relationships between network structure, molecular chain dynamics and ultimate gas transport properties in the membranes and to develop design rules for the optimization of these materials for specific separations. Model networks have been synthesized with controlled variations in composition, crosslink density and branch content. Detailed dynamic mechanical and dielectric measurements have been completed and the relaxation characteristics of the networks have 48

POSTER ABSTRACTS been determined as a function of network architecture and corresponding free volume.

Measurements of gas permeability and solubility in the membrane films reveal a sensitivity to network structure and free volume that correlates with the nature and content of the copolymer components and which is not controlled solely by crosslink density. The performance of the model networks compares favorably with the separation characteristics of other commonly-used membrane polymers and establishes the viability of these materials for use as highly-permeable, selective membranes for the separation of mixtures such as CO2/H2 or CO2/CH4.

Keywords: polymers, membranes, gas separation, carbon dioxide 87. Indentation Induced Whisker Growth On An Electroplated Tin Film Li, Yan*, Fuqian Yang, John A Nychka; Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, University of Kentucky As lead is poisonous to both human beings and environment, modern industry moves toward leadfree tin solder. One problem with lead-free solder is the whisker growth, which is believed to be associated with a stress relaxation process. In this study, a thin layer of tin was electroplated on copper substrate, the thickness of which was controlled by the electroplating time. Micro-indentation was performed on the tin-coated copper to induce the mechanical stresses in the tin layer. The growth of whiskers around the edge of indents was observed with the area density of the whiskers increasing with the increase of the indentation load.

Keywords: Whisker growth, indentation, tin 88. Parallel Optical Direct Write Lithography for MEMS Applications McNamara, Shamus*, Keith Ahern, Emmett Moore; ECE, University of Louisville A method for directly writing a pattern on a silicon wafer suitable for MEMS applications is presented.

MEMS applications present unique challenges, such as large topographic variations, that make traditional direct write methods difficult.

Keywords: Lithography, MEMS 89. Graphene Nanoelectronics Menon, Madhu*, Antonis Andriotis; Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, Crete, Greece; Madhu Menon, Heather Gibson; Center for

Computational Sciences, University of Kentucky; Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas, University of Kentucky The electronic transport properties of three-terminal graphene nanoribbon T-junctions are investigated using a quantum tight binding molecular dynamics scheme. The transport properties are found to depend very sensitively on the geometric features of the branches of the junctions. This dependence is even more pronounced than the corresponding dependence in the case of T-shaped single wall carbon nanotubes. This is attributed to the strong dependence of the conductivity of the nanoribbons on their chirality, width and length. An additional factor that influences the conductivity of the Tjunction nanoribbons is associated with the junction itself; i.e., the way the branches are interconnected.

Keywords: molecular electronics, molecular dynamics, graphene 90. Improved Machinning Of Metal-On-Metal Hip Implants D. Puleo* Center for Biomedical Engineering; I.S. Jawahir, Department of Mechanical Engineering; O.W. Dillon Jr., Department of Mechanical Engineering; D. Pienkowski, Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Kentucky An estimated 380,000 total hip replacement procedures were performed in the U.S. in 2005.

Metal-on-polymer bearings have been the couple of choice in the U.S. for more than two decades.

Generation of wear debris by relative movement of the two components leads to eventual failure of the implant. With the goal of minimizing wear in articulating contact areas, alternate couples are receiving increasing interest. In particular, modern metal-on-metal joint replacements demonstrate improved wear resistance, but they do not avoid formation of wear debris. Surface fatigue plays a major role in formation of particulates during the lifetime of the implant. The objective of this project is to develop protocols for machining metallic implants to induce compressive residual stresses, which will reduce surface fatigue and in turn decrease shedding of debris. Implant grade Co-CrMo alloy pins were prepared using different machining conditions. Wear testing was conducted using a custom-made tribological testing system (pin-on-disc tester). Pin mass and surface roughness readings were taken at regular intervals of 100,000 cycles to track wear under simulated physiological conditions. Residual stress measurements are 49

POSTER ABSTRACTS currently underway. Initial experiments show that the different machining conditions affect wear of the Co-Cr-Mo pins. These results are being used to optimize the machining conditions to ensure minimization of wear debris. The ultimate aim is to demonstrate that advanced machining methodologies can be used to reduce implant wear without time-consuming and costly post-machining heat treatments. The techniques resulting from this project can be translated to the biomedical device manufacturing community.

Keywords: Biomaterials, Residual Stress, Surface Fatigue, Wear 91. Interfacially Controlled Incorporation Of Titanium Within Ordered Mesoporous Silica Rankin, Stephen*, Mohammed S. Rahman, Saadia T. Khan; Chemical and Materials Engineering Department, University of Kentucky In this project, selective interactions between saccharide-based surfactants and transition metals are being used to guide transition metal alkoxides to the surface of micellar aggregates during the formation of silica. The objective is the formation of well-defined, dispersed active sites for adsorption and catalysis within an ordered structure having uniform pores on the order of 2-5 nm in diameter.

Specifically, we will report the use of a maltosidebased surfactant mixed with a commodity cationic surfactant to promote the formation of isolated titanium sites on mesoporous sillica through a cocondensation process. Materials synthesis in both thin films and bulk powders will be discussed, along with structural and spectroscopic evidence that the target structures have been formed. We will conclude by discussing the use of the high fraction isolated tetracoordinated titanium sites in these materials for heterogeneous epoxidation catalysis.

Keywords: synthesis, ceramics, catalysis, adsorption, nanotechnology 92. Metallic And Carbon Foam Bonding Sekulic, P., Dusan*1, Hui Zhao1, Liu Wen1, Michael Johnson1, Y.M. Dakhoul2; 1University of Kentucky, 2Caterpillar, Inc. Metal and/or carbon foams have been used at a rapidly increasing rate for applications involving structural and/or thermal tasks. An entirely new realm of manufacturing technologies, capable of achieving desired integrity at the micro level, must be introduced to accommodate these new applications. For example, bonding of extended heat transfer surfaces requires composite materials with

minimum of up to 5 microns thick clad layers.

However, use of such materials in combination with foams fails to offer successful bonding at the macro scale due to an inherent need to form all the joints at spatially macro-distributed micro-locations. Such foam material cannot take an advantage of a surface tension driven molten metal flow along macro capillary paths of bonded mating surfaces because these paths simply do not exist. We plan to analyze behavior of molten metal at the micro level and joint formation of foam-substrate structures.

The related applications involve automotive, electronics and aero space applications (nontraditional heat exchangers, and electronics cooling).

Keywords: Metal foams, wetting, brazing 93. Commercialization Of High Quality Nanoporous Alumina Templates For Nanoscale Devices And Systems Singh, Vijay* Suresh Rajaputra 1,3, Raghu Mangu 1, Allen Hermann 3, Dennis Field 2,3 and Vijay Singh 1,3; 1Center for Nanoscale Science and Engineering, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Kentucky; 2 College of Business and Tech, University of Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky University, NanoTech Solutions LLC NanoTech Solutions LLC specializes in the production of nanoporous metal oxide templates with controllable pore size, separation and spatial uniformity. These templates offer a cost-effective approach to create nanoscale features over large areas, and have applications in nanowire photovoltaics, sensors, filtration and flow membranes, substrates for aligned nanotube array growth, biological assay, cell growth, and controlled biochemical reactions.

Keywords: Nanoporous, alumina, photovoltaics, sensors, membranes 94. Void Detection Robot Wilson, Stacy*, Department of Engineering; Nick Crawford, Department of Geography and Geology, Western Kentucky University The Western Kentucky University Department of Engineering in support of the Center for Cave and Karst Studies is developing a remotely controlled robot which will be used to locate voids underground. The robot will be a remotely controlled vehicle that will use microgravity and GPS to accurately detect and measure voids below the surface. This poster will describe the construction of the robot to date, future phases of the project, and 50

POSTER ABSTRACTS the use of microgravity technology to locate subsurface voids with the robot.

Keywords: void detection, robotics 95. Precipitation, Growth And Mechanical Behavior of HA Yang, Fuqian* Ding Li1, Fuqian Yang1*, and John Nychka2; 1Chemical and Materials Engineering Department, University of Kentucky; 2 Chemical and Materials Engineering Department, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada Bioactive glasses are well known for applications in bone replacement implants. The formation of the hydroxyl apatite (HA) layers, including both the precipitation and growth behavior, and the mechanical behavior of the HA layers determine the bioactive response of a bioglass in its biomedical applications. In this work, the precipitation and growth of HA layers on 45S5 bioglass were revealed in a simulated body fluid (SBF) at a temperature of 37째C. The thickness of the HA layers increased with the immersion time, following a parabolic relation.

The growth behavior of the HA layers was evaluated as a function of the immersion time. Using energy dispersive spectrometer, dicalcium phosphate and HA were detected on the surface of the 45S5 bioglass after immersion in the SBF. The dependence of the indentation hardness on the thickness of the HA layers was also studied.

Keywords: hydroxyl apatite, mechanical behavior, precipitation

51

LIST OF ATTENDEES LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

POSITION

INSTITUTION/COMPANY

EMAIL

Ahmed

Rachel

Student

University of Kentucky

rachel.ahmed@uky.edu

Alan

Seyed Mehdi

Student

University of Kentucky

s.m.alan@uky.edu

Alvarez

Daniel

Postdoctoral Research

University of Kentucky

alvarez.daniel@bae.uky.edu

Anderson

Kimberly

Professor

University of Kentucky

kanderson@engr.uky.edu

Antony

Solomon

Assistant Professor

Murray State University

solomon.antony@murraystate.e du

Atwood

David

Professor

University of Kentucky

datwood@uky.edu

Baker

Christopher

IT Manager

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

cbaker@kstc.com

Balk

Thomas

Professor

University of Kentucky

balk@engr.uky.edu

Bass

Shannon

VIce President Business Development

ParaTechs Corp.

sbass@paratechs.com

Bayarsaihan

Dashzeveg

University of Louisville

d0baya01@louisville.edu

Beran

John

CEO

Scout Diagnostics

jeberan@insightbb.com

Bradley

Luke

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

lhbradley@uky.edu

Bruce

Eugene

Professor

University of Kentucky

ebruce@uky.edu

Bryson

Lindsey

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

bryson@engr.uky.edu

Burklow

Cindy

COO

Naprogenix, Inc.

cindy_burklow@yahoo.com

Carrithers

Stephen

VP, Director of Research

SEQUELA, Inc

SequelaSteve@yahoo.com

Castillo

Manuel

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

mcastill@bae.uky.edu

Chambers

Orlando

Biotechnology Relations Director

University of Kentucky

ochamb@uky.edu

Chanda

Bidisha

Student

University of Kentucky

bidisha.chanda@uky.edu

Chen

Rong

Student

University of Kentucky

rong.chen@uky.edu

Chen

Lei

Student

University of Kentucky

lei.chen@uky.edu

Chien

Sufan

Professor

University of Louisville

s0chie01@louisville.edu

Claxton

Chris

Scout Diagnostics

chrisclaxton@msn.com

Cleary

David

Assistant Professor

Sullivan University

dcleary@sullivan.edu

Cowgill

Brad

President

Kentucky Council Post Secondary Education

bradford.cowgill@ky.gov

Craft

Matt

Craft Consulting, LLC

craftconsulting@gmail.com

Creager

Mitch

Financial Analyst/Accounting Manager

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

mcreager@kstc.com

Dang

Hongmei

Student

University of Kentucky

HMei.Dang@gmail.com

Davies

H. Maelor

Director

University of Kentucky

mdavies@uky.edu

DeCamp

Kim

Client Representative

Software Information Systems, LLC

kimdecamp@mikrotec.com

Decker

Mandy Wilson

Patent Attorney

Stites and Harbison, PLLC

mdecker@stites.com

52

LIST OF ATTENDEES LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

POSITION

INSTITUTION/COMPANY

EMAIL

Deshpande

Ashish

Research Assistant

University of Kentucky

ashish.deshpande@uky.edu

Dillon, Jr.

Oscar

Professor Emiritus

University of Kentucky

vzn05xpm@verizon.net

Dugatkin

Lee

Professor

University of Louisville

lee.dugatkin@louisville.edu

Durtsche

Richard

Associate Professor

Northern Kentucky University

durtsche@nku.edu

Ehringer

William

Associate Professor

University of Louisville

wdehri01@gwise.louisville.edu

Eisenberg

Rod

ChemPharma International, LLC

reisenberg@chempharma.com

Emam

Ahmed

Assistant Professor

Western Kentucky University

ahmed.emam@wku.edu

Ernest

Andrew

Director, Center for Water Resource Studies

Western Kentucky University

Andrew.Ernest@WKU.edu

Fan

Cui

Graduate Student

University of Kentucky

cui.fan@uky.edu

Fath-Goodin

Angelika

Vice President

ParaTechs Corp.

afath@uky.edu

Fei

Zongming

Professor

University of Kentucky

fei@cs.uky.edu

Frolenkov

Gregory

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

Gregory.Frolenkov@uky.edu

Fukushige

Hirotada

Post Doctoral Scholar

University of Kentucky

hfuku1@uky.edu

Gao

Qing-Ming

University of Kentucky

qing-ming.gao@uky.edu

Garera

Brittany

Undergraduate Student

Northern Kentucky University

garerab@nku.edu

Gettleman

Lawrence

Professor of Prosthodontics & Biomaterials

University of Louisville

gettleman@louisville.edu

Gharaibeh

Mohammed

Student

University of Kentucky

gharaibeh@uky.edu

Gibson

Heather

Student

Center for Computational Sciences

tmoody@uky.edu

Gunjan

Samir

Researcher

Naprogenix, Inc.

gunjansk@yahoo.com

Guttmann

Rodney

Associate Professor

University of Kentucky

rodneyg@email.uky.edu

Hamade

Ramsey

Visiting Associate Professor

University of Kentucky

hamade@engr.uky.edu

Han

Dianwei

Ph.D Student

University of Kentucky

dianweih@csr.uky.edu

Hannel

Thaddaeus

Ph.D. Student, Analytical Chemistry

University of Kentucky

Thad.hannel@uky.edu

Hastings

J. Todd

Associate Professor

University of Kentucky

hastings@engr.uky.edu

Haun

Andrew

Student

University of Louisville

amhaun01@louisville.edu

He

Kate

Assistant Professor

Murray State University

kate.he@murraystate.edu

Higgens

Sean

Speaker

NetMosaics

srhiggin@netmosaics.com

Hildebrand

David

Professor

University of Kentucky

dhild@uky.edu

Hilgarth

Roland

Scientist

ParaTechs Corp.

hilgarth@paratechs.com

53

LIST OF ATTENDEES LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

POSITION

INSTITUTION/COMPANY

EMAIL

Hillard

Jan

Associate Provost for Regional Stewardship

Northern Kentucky University

hillardj1@nku.edu

Hilt

J. Zach

Professor

University of Kentucky

hilt@engr.uky.edu

Holler

Chris

Student

University of Kentucky

chris.holler@uky.edu

Holley

Bob

Researcher

Naprogenix, Inc.

rholley@uky.edu

Houtz

Robert

Professor

University of Kentucky

rhoutz@uky.edu

Hu

Patrick

President and Chairman

Advanced Dynamics

patrick.g.hu@gmail.com

Hughes

Carolyn

Sullivan U College of Pharmacy

cfhughes@sullivan.edu

Hundley

Mark

Grant Development Specialist

KCTCS

mark.hundley@kctcs.edu

Jackson

Jim

President, SIS Public Sector

Software Information Systems, LLC

dsturgill@thinksis.com

Jain

Anil K.

University Distinguished Professor

Michigan State University

jani@cse.msu.edu

Jain

Mahendra

Vice President and Executive Director

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporaton

mjain@kstc.com

Jassal

Parminder

Director

Greater Louisville Inc

PJassal@greaterlouisville.com

Jawahir

I. S.

Professor

University of Kentucky

jawahir@engr.uky.edu

Jeong

Rae-Dong

Student

University of Kentucky

raedongjeong@uky.edu

Johnsrud

Cris

Speaker

FLC Southeast Region

PathfinderResearch@alltel.net

Kalbfleisch

Ted

Assistant Professor

University of Louisville

ted.kalbfleisch@louisville.edu

Kalika

Douglass

Professor of Chemical Engineering

University of Kentucky

kalika@engr.uky.edu

Kandala

Satish

Graduate Student

University of Kentucky

satishkumarkandala@uky.edu

Keach

Don

Director

Technology Transfer Office, Univ. Kentucky

dkeach@email.uky.edu

Kimel

Kris

President - KSTC

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

kkimel@kstc.com

Klotz

Martin

Professor

University of Louisville

martin.klotz@louisville.edu

Kulshrestha

Manish

Researcher

Naprogenix, Inc.

kulshrestham@yahoo.com

Kurepa

Jasmina

Dr.

University of Kentucky

jasmina.kurepa@uky.edu

Labreveux

Maria

Program Manager

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

mlabreveux@kstc.com

Lande'

Arnold

MD

VITOR

alande1@juno.com

Lang

Joanne

Executive Vice President - KSTC

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

jlang@kstc.com

Lawless

Patrick

President and Founder

Biological Prospects, LLC

lawless@biologicalprospects.com

Li

Feng

University of Kentucky

flia@email.uky.edu

54

LIST OF ATTENDEES LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

POSITION

INSTITUTION/COMPANY

EMAIL

Li

Ding

Student

University of Kentucky

liding@engr.uky.edu

Li

Yan

Student

University of Kentucky

ylik@uky.edu

Li

Baochun

Researcher

Naprogenix, Inc.

libaoc@yahoo.com

Li

Wen-Chung

Student

University of Kentucky

micro_scientist@yahoo.com.tw

Lind

Allen

VP of Information & Technology

Council on Postsecondary Education

allen.lind@ky.gov

Littleton

John

Chief Scientific Officer

Naprogenix, Inc.

john.littleton@uky.edu

Liu

Piao

Graduate Student

University of Kentucky

piao.liu@uky.edu

Lucas

Shawn

Graduate Student

Unversity of Kentucky

stluca2@uky.edu

Mangu

Raghu

Graduate Student

University of Kentucky

raghu.mangu@uky.edu

McCurren

J. Kevin

President

Regenasight, LLC

jkmccurren@aol.com

McNamara

Shamus

Assistant Professor

University of Louisville

shamus.mcnamara@louisville.ed u

Medina

Shiela

Eng. Program Manager

University of Kentucky

medina@caer.uky.edu

Meenach

Samantha

Research Assistant

University of Kentucky

samantha.meenach@gmail.com

Mehl

David

Graduate Fellow

University of Louisville

mehl@mehl.net

Menguc

M. Pinar

Professor

University of Kentucky

menguc@engr.uky.edu

Menon

Madhu

Professor

University of Kentucky

madhu@ccs.uky.edu

Meyring

Brenda

Innovation and Commercialization Center

brenda.meyring@eku.edu

Migliore

Patrick

President

Novera, LLC

pmigliore@noveradrugs.com

Mix, III

Charles

Manager

Belcan Corporation

cmix@belcan.com

Mo

Yiqun

Post-doc

University of Louisville

Yiqun.Mo@louisville.edu

Mohan

Royce

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

Royce.Mohan@uky.edu

Monks

Noel

Researcher

Naprogenix, Inc.

nmonks@naprogenix.com

Mukhopadhya y

Partha

Assistant Professor

University of Louisville

p0mukh01@louisville.edu

Mundell

Richard

Scientist II

University of Kentucky

rmund2@uky.edu

Murphy

Michael

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

mpmurp3@email.uky.edu

Nesbitt

Linda

Director

Northern Kentucky University

nesbitt@nku.edu

Oestertag

Eric

Speaker

Transposagen Biopharmaceuticals, Inc.

oestertag@mail.med.upenn.edu

Palandoken

Hasan

Professor

Western Kentucky University

hasan.palandoken@wku.edu

Parekh

Bhupendra B.K.

Senior Research Engineer

University of Kentucky

parekh@caer.uky.edu

Patel

Dhavel

Graduate Student

UK College of Pharmacy

kharvey@email.uky.edu

Pathak

Yashwant

Chair and Professor

Sullivan University College

ypathak@sullivan.edu

55

LIST OF ATTENDEES LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

POSITION

INSTITUTION/COMPANY

of Pharmacy

EMAIL

Prinssen

Larry

COO

KNIGHT-ED, LLC

larry@knight-ed.com

Pritchard

Carrie

Assistant Professor

Western Kentucky University

carrie.pritchard@wku.edu

Rajaputra

Suresh

Sr. Research Scientist

University of Kentucky

suresh.rajaputra@uky.edu

Randolph

Ann

Consultant to Life Sciences

Naprogenix, Inc.

annran@bellsouth.net

Rankin

Stephen

Associate Professor

University of Kentucky

srankin@engr.uky.edu

Ratajczak

Janina

Assistant Professor

University of Louisville

j0rata01@louisville.edu

Reafsnyder

James

Consultant

Technology Partnering.

jreafsnyder@charter.net

Rempfer

Debbie

Administrative Assistant

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

drempfer@kstc.com

Richter

Natali

Student

University of Louisville

nbrich01@louisville.edu

Rogers

Trent

Researcher

Naprogenix, Inc.

dtrogers@uky.edu

Ronald

Kenneth

Program Manager

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

kronald@kstc.com

Sahi

Shivendra

Professor

Western Kentucky University

shiv.sahi@wku.edu

Santhanam

Radhika

Professor

University of Kentucky

Santhan@uky.edu

Seigler

Thomas

Professor

University of Kentucky

seigler@engr.uky.edu

Sekulic

P. Dusan

Professor

University of Kentucky

sekulicd@engr.uky.edu

Shah

Sadiq

Associate Vice President

Western Kentucky University

sadiq.shah@wku.edu

Sheng

Jian

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

sheng@engr.uky.edu

Singh

Vijay

Professor

University of Kentucky

vsingh@engr.uky.edu

Steward

Kelly

Undergraduate Student

Northern Kentucky University

stuardk1@nku.edu

Stump

Richard

VP Operations

Transposagen Biopharmaceuticals

rstump@transposagenbio.com

Sturgill

Dee

Art Director

Software Information Systems, LLC

dsturgill@thinksis.com

Summe

Suzanne

Undergraduate Student

Northern Kentucky University

summes1@nku.edu

Talbott

Debra

Accounting Assistant

Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation

dtalbott@kstc.com

Tang

Xiaoqing

Student

University of Kentucky

xtang3@uky.edu

Tao

Daniel

Professor

University of Kentucky

dtao@engr.uky.edu

Toborek

Michal

Professor

University of Kentucky

mjtobo00@uky.edu

Tran

Hieu

Dean and Professor

Sullivan University College

htran@sullivan.edu

56

LIST OF ATTENDEES LAST NAME

FIRST NAME

POSITION

INSTITUTION/COMPANY

of Pharmacy

EMAIL

Tseng

Michael

Professor

University of Louisville

mttsen01@louisville.edu

Vennelaganti

Swetha

Student

Center for Biomedical Engineering

swetha.v@uky.edu

Voor

Michael

Associate Professor

University of Louisville

mike.voor@louisville.edu

Wan

Rong

Research Fellow

University of Louisville

qunwei.zhang@louisville.edu

Wang

Jianpu

Research Fellow

University of Louisville

j0wang19@louisville.edu

Wang

Yin

Student

University of Kentucky

Yinwang@uky.edu

Ward

George

VP Business Development

Transposagen Biopharmaceuticals

gward@transposagenbio.com

Warner

Dennis

Assistant Professor

University of Louisville

dennis.warner@louisville.edu

Webb

Robin

Student

University of Kentucky

rlwebb5@email.uky.edu

Webb

Cathleen

Professor

Western Kentucky University

cathleen.webb@wku.edu

Williams

Jessica

Commercialization Specialist

University of Kentucky

jessica.williams@uky.edu

Wilson

Stacy

Professor

Western Kentucky University

stacy.wilson@wku.edu

Yang

Shu

Research Assistant

University of Kentucky

shu.yang@uky.edu

Yang

Jianjun

Student

University of Kentucky

jyang@netlab.uky.edu

Yang

Dong-Sheng

Professor

University of Kentucky

dyang0@uky.edu

Yi

Ping

Student

University of Kentucky

yiping@netlab.uky.edu

Yokel

Robert

President

Alkymos, Inc.

Robert.Yokel@Alkymos.com

Zhan

Chang-Guo

Professor

University of Kentucky

zhan@uky.edu

Zhang

Robin

Assistant Professor, Geosciences

Murray State University

robin.zhang@murraystate.edu

Zhang

Jun

Professor

University of Kentucky

jzhang@cs.uky.edu

Zhao

Hui

Post Doctoral Associate

University of Kentucky

hzhao0@engr.uky.edu

Zhu

Hongyan

Assistant Professor

University of Kentucky

hzhu4@uky.edu

Zhuang

Qi

Student

University of Kentucky

qzhua2@uky.edu

Schen

Michael

Scientific Advisor

NIST/TIP

michael.schen@nist.gov

Baer

Cara

Attorney

Butler, Snow…PLLC

Cara.Baer@butlersnow.com

King

David

Director

Office Industry Contracts, Univ. of Louisville

dave.king@louisville.edu

57

Survey: Kentucky Innovation and Enterprise Conference 2008 1. What did you like most/least of the 2008 Kentucky Innovation and Enterprise Conference?

(Please rate from 1 to 5; 5 = most, 1 =least) Event Poster session Networking opportunities Federal Program Manager talks Invited speakers Other:

Rating

2. If you participated of the breakout sessions, rate the usefulness of the information provided (Please rank from 1 to 4; 4 = most, 1 = least, N/A did not attend) Session IP Workforce Starting up a Company in KY Other:

Rating

3. Rate the location and space for the conference (KIEC alternates cities, please rate the space and not the city)

4. Suggest topics &/or speaker for 2009 Kentucky Innovation and Enterprise Conference.

Thank you for your input.

KSEF

58

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