Getting Funding From PCORI: New Directions, New Collaborations

Is your project a collaboration between clinicians, researchers, or policymakers/payers? Does your project include patient partners to help design, plan or conduct the research? Then the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) may be a source of funding for you. In this presentation we will discuss PCORI’s aims and history, types of funding mechanisms, and tips from funded projects. We look forward to seeing you at the event. Zoom link

Researchers Continue Algal Bloom Study on Lake Okeechobee

From left, Robert Smith, Viviana Mazzei, and Emily Karwack with the United States Geological Survey, and Lauren Krausfeldt and Jose Lopez with Nova Southeastern University.

Since 2019, Halmos College of Arts and Sciences (HCAS) faculty member Jose Lopez, Ph.D., has been co-leading an Army Corps of Engineers-funded project with the United States Geological Survey (USGS) to better understand the blue green (cyanobacterial) algae dynamics. These algae are at the heart of many of these harmful algal blooms (HABs) and microbial communities in the Lake Okeechobee watershed. After a couple of years of relative calm with no massive harmful algal blooms, the blue green algal communities have now made their presence known again in a big way.

Lopez, along with faculty and students from Florida Gulf Coast University, USGS, and the South Florida Water Management District, has continued the project using artificial mesocosms. These controlled outdoor experiments at the Franklin Lock test the effects of adding nitrate, ammonium, urea or phosphorus supplements to an environment. In addition to this work, the group conducts monthly environmental water sampling across Lake Okeechobee.

“The artificial mesocosm experiments are based on taking Caloosahatchee River water and placing it into large replicate cylinders, which essentially creates a closed system for systematic study,” Lopez said. This also allows the team to add various nutrient supplements to the natural river water communities and monitor the effects physiologically and allows the group to see which genes are activated without degrading the surrounding habitats.

Lopez’s laboratory at the Guy Harvey Oceanographic Center has been applying deep “-omics” techniques (metagenomics/metatranscriptomics approaches with deep DNA sequencing) to better understand the microbial community dynamics and drivers that could lead to HABs. HCAS assistant researcher Lauren Krausfeldt, Ph.D., has conducted most of the metagenomic analyses for the project. The large cache of genomic data will likely provide important baselines and references, adding richer context for future comparisons and possible HAB predictions.

This research is funded in part by the Army Corps of Engineers to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) and NSU via the Caribbean Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit.

 

NSU Research Focuses on Elusive, Vulnerable Big Cat: The Leopard

Credit: Nikolay-Zinoviev

The majestic leopard – the only great cat species (Genus Panthera) to roam about both Africa and Asia today – is classified as highly vulnerable by the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). An international team involving scientists from Nova Southeastern University (NSU), Nottingham Trent University, the University of Cambridge, University of Leicester in U.K. and the University of Potsdam in Germany hope to improve that status.

Because of its elusive nature, and its adaptation to multiple landscapes (rain forest, savannah, deserts and mountain sides) an accurate estimation of their global census has not been possible.

Using the latest technologies of population ecology and molecular evolution, researchers sampled the genome DNA sequence of 23 individual leopards from eight geographically separated subspecies locales. Ancient DNA sequences for 18 archival specimens along with five living leopards were combined to refine our understanding of the leopard’s movements, population reductions, divergence and isolation, and over the past half million years.

The new study was published in Current Biology in May.

 “This study changes everything about genetic contributions to conservation management of the world’s leopards, particularly the highly threatened Amur leopard,” said Stephen J. O’Brien, Ph.D., a professor and research scientist in NSU’s Halmos College of Arts and Sciences, who is a collaborating author and also led the genetic analyses the Florida panther restoration two decades ago.

O’Brien, is also the Chief Scientific Officer at the Theodosius Dobzhansky Center for Genome Bioinformatics, St. Petersburg State University, Russia, and is a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

See full story.

NSF Grant Funds Dental Research Project

Project CHOMPER principal investigators Cecil Lewis (top left) and Tanvi Honap (top right), with co-investigators (below from left) Cara Monroe, Marc Levine, Anne Stone, Brenda Baker, Andrew Ozga, and Keith Prufer.

Andrew Ozga, Ph.D., a Halmos College of Arts and Sciences faculty member, and project leading University of Oklahoma researchers Drs. Cecil Lewis and Tanvi Honap were awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant or their project “CHOMPER: Calculus and Hominid Oral Metagenomes for Pathogen Evolution Research.”

Oral diseases, such as dental caries and periodontitis, affect nearly 3.5 billion people worldwide, and are often referred to as the “silent epidemic.” These diseases are caused by bacteria found in the normal oral cavity and can cause disease in an opportunistic manner. The core aims of the CHOMPER project are to study how the genomes of these oral disease-causing bacteria differ depending on host species, geographic location, and dietary lifestyle, as well as how these genomes have evolved over time.

The CHOMPER team has collected dental calculus (calcified dental plaque) samples from nonhuman primates, such as chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans, housed in museums in the U.S., and from archaeological human remains from archaeological sites in the Americas and Africa. These ancient human populations span a period of nearly 10,000 years and encompass the transition of humans from a forager to agricultural lifestyle. Using cutting-edge ancient DNA techniques, the team will reconstruct the genomes of oral pathogens from the dental calculus samples to answer questions regarding strain diversity, biogeography, genome structure, and the presence of genes associated with virulence and antibiotic resistance.

The CHOMPER team also includes researchers Drs. Cara Monroe and Marc Levine (University of Oklahoma), Drs. Anne Stone and Brenda Baker (Arizona State University), and Keith Prufer, Ph.D., (University of New Mexico). The CHOMPER project aims to encourage positive oral health outcomes through public presentations focused on the impact of oral disease and the role of the microbiome in oral health.

Halmos’ Top Biology Students Reflect on Their Honors

This spring, five of the highest academically performing biology students from the Halmos College of Arts and Sciences orally presented the highlights of their honors in Major Portfolio to a large Zoom audience of faculty and many of their peers. The students reflected on their journeys as Sharks.

In addition to maintaining a minimum 3.8 GPA, each student also was required to complete four 4000 level didactic elective courses and a major research project in an independent study, internship or practicum course.

The research project titles included: Development of “Sharkavir:”  A New Hypothetical Inhibitor for HIV-1 Protease (Feza Abbas); Impacts of COVID-19 on Global Healthcare Research and Management (Stephanie Autore); Synthesis of Metal-Binding Polymers for Water Purification using  Reversible Addition-Fragmentation Chain-Transer Polymerization (Sneha Polam); Periodically Disturbing the Spatial Structure of a Microbial Community Composed of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus Determines its Composition (Brandon Toscan); and The effect of stress on the transcriptomes of circulating immune cells in patients with Gulf War Illness (Kyle Hansotia).

Launch of 2021 Grant Writing Mentoring Program for NSU Faculty

Hosted by the NSU Grant Writing Lab and Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Osteopathic Medicine, this year’s Grant Writing Mentoring Program will support early stage NSU researchers (i.e., those who do not have past success in winning grant funding for their work) in the grant seeking process. The mentoring program will pair established researchers (i.e., those with experience and success applying for and winning research funding) with these junior faculty with the aim of writing and submitting an internal or external grant application by the end of the program period. Participation in this program will allow mentees access to external grant review of their proposals as well as equip them with their own grant writing handbook.

The 2021 program plans to welcome a cohort of 10 mentees and 10 mentors. The overarching goal is to increase the capacity (i.e., knowledge and skills) of NSU researchers early in their careers to find, apply for, and be competitive to receive grant support for their research. This goal will be accomplished through an approximately year-long program that features one-on-one meetings between mentees and their mentors, check-ins with the program’s Advisory Committee, and utilization of NSU’s grantsmanship trainings and resources.

Full-time NSU faculty fitting the Mentee Criteria & Commitment (https://www.nova.edu/tred/research-resources/grant-writing-mentoring-program.html) should submit an application online by March 1, 2021.  For more information on participating in this program as a Mentee, please join us on Zoom on Thursday, Feb. 25, 12:30-1:00pm. The program Advisory Committee will discuss program goals, Mentee expectations, and program timeline.

To Submit a Mentee Application:

  • Eligible Mentees (i.e., full-time assistant and associate professors at NSU) will find a course invitation from Canvas in your email inbox for the course “2021 Grant Writing Mentoring Program.” This invitation is sent at the start of the open recruitment period for Mentees.
  • Accept the course invitation and click the “Modules” tab on the left-hand course toolbar.
  • Under the “2021 Application for Mentees” module, choose the “2021 Mentee Application – click here to apply!” item.
  • This will launch a survey form to collect more information about you and your interest in the program. The information you provide here will be used by the program’s Advisory Committee to facilitate Mentee selection and matching with a Mentor. Deadline to complete this application is March 1, 2021.

Questions? Email GRANTLAB@nova.edu

 

Halmos Faculty Publishes Microbiome Article in Nature Scientific Reports

This November, Halmos biological sciences faculty member Andrew Ozga, Ph.D. was lead author in a paper entitled, “Oral microbiome diversity in chimpanzees from Gombe National Park”. This research is the first to examine the bacteria within the wild chimpanzee oral cavity.

Historic calcified dental plaque (dental calculus) can provide a unique perspective into the health status of past human populations but currently no studies have focused on the oral microbial ecosystem of other primates, including our closest relatives, within the hominids. Advances in next generation sequencing and bioinformatic analyses have allowed researchers to study the oral microbiota of modern as well as historic and prehistoric populations through the investigation of dental calculus. Dental calculus is commonly found in living populations without adequate dental care as well as archaeological skeletal assemblages and has been estimated to contain 200 million cells per milligram. This study looks at dental calculus recovered from chimpanzee skeletal remains buried in Gombe National Park in Tanzania from the 1960’s to the 2000’s and includes several chimpanzees that Jane Goodall herself studied.

This article discussed the significant differences in oral microbial phyla between chimpanzees and anatomically modern humans. The results showcase core differences between host species and stress the importance of continued sequencing of nonhuman primate microbiomes in order to fully understand the complexity of their oral ecologies.

For more information: https://twitter.com/NSUHalmos/status/1199070486627520512 

Link to the article: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-53802-1

FY2021 PFRDG & QOL Grant Applications due January 22, 2020

The President’s Faculty Research and Development Grant (PFRDG) applications are due on January 22, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. For access to the application portal and guidelines, please visit the PFRDG website at http://www.nova.edu/pfrdg. For questions and additional information, please email pfrdg@nova.edu. The two categories for PFRDG Awards are:

  • The Research Development Track – The Research Development Track continues to provide seed money up to $15,000. These projects are expected to lead to external funding. Eligibility open to all full-time faculty/research scientists, regardless of discipline.
  • The Research Scholar Track – Started in FY2018, the Research Scholar Track is designed to encourage applicants in the areas of Humanities and Social Sciences (including Education, Business and Law). Applicants can apply for up to $3,000 towards publications in scholarly journals, book chapters, books, copyrights and trademarks.

The Quality of Life (QOL) applications are also due on January 22, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. via electronic submission to npascucci@nova.edu. For more information and application guidelines, please visit https://www.nova.edu/qol/; for questions, please contact Nick Pascucci at npascucci@nova.edu. The main categories for the Quality of Life Awards are:

  • Autism – Addresses issues related to children, youth and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and/or service provision to this population
  • Children and Families– Addresses issues related to the goals and priorities of the Children’s Services Council, in addition to other top priority issues affecting children, families in Broward County
  • Criminal Justice – Addresses issues related to the Broward Sheriff’s Office identified needs and priorities. The Broward Sheriff’s office has identified the following areas of interest: Guns/Violence, Gangs, Hate Crimes, Police Stress
  • Elderly Services – Addresses issues related to the elderly population
  • Foster Care – Addresses issues related to Foster Care and ChildNet’s identified needs
  • Adult General – Addresses a wide range of issues impacting adults in Broward County and beyond

PFRDG & QOL Applicant Trainings are set. Follow the link below to see sessions and register.

For information and registration, please visit http://www.nova.edu/pfrdg

Experts Share Knowledge about Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease

In early August, experts from around the Caribbean region met at the Eco-Discovery Centre in Key West to share information on an emerging and unprecedented threat to Caribbean coral reefs posed by a coral disease first documented in Florida and now being reported at sites across the region.

Since 2014, the Florida Reef Tract has been severely impacted by a newly documented coral disease which scientists are calling “Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease” (SCTLD) because it affects only hard stony corals and is characterized by the rapid loss of live coral tissue. The disease has rapidly spread across coral reefs from Palm Beach to the lower Florida Keys and in the last year has been reported elsewhere in the Caribbean, including in Mexico, Jamaica, Sint Maarten, the Dominican Republic, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands and Belize. Scientists from NOAA and the state of Florida, sanctuary managers and academic partners, including Halmos College researchers Brian Walker, Ph.D. and Karen Neely, Ph.D, have been working to document the outbreak, identify causes and contributing factors, and develop treatments and interventions

The meeting is an initiative of the MPAConnect Network which comprises marine protected area managers in 10 Caribbean countries and territories, working in partnership with the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute and the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Reef Conservation Program, with funding from NOAA CRCP and the NFWF Coral Reef Conservation Fund.

Inauguration and Installation of NSU’s Sigma XI Chapter – The Scientific Research Honor Society, Sept 19

WHO: Harry K. Moon, M.D., NSU Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer NSU President’s Council, Faculty, Staff, and Students

WHAT: Reception, Inauguration, and Installation of NSU’s Sigma XI Chapter (The Scientific Research Honor Society)

WHERE: NSU’s Carl DeSantis Bldg., 3rd Floor Sales Institute, 3300 S. University Drive. Fort Lauderdale

WHEN: 3 p.m. Thursday, September 19

WHY: Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Honor Society is more than 125 years old with chapters all over the world. More than 200 Nobel Prize winners have been members. Sigma Xi has a long-standing history of service to the field of science and engineering. The organization is a source of scholarships/grants and conferences, publications and other resources.

NSU submitted a petition to Sigma Xi beginning two years ago and through an extensive review process has been granted the honor of having a Sigma Xi chapter installed. At this installation, we will also be inducting new members. Having the NSU chapter of Sigma Xi puts us among the ranks of more than 500 chapters in North America and around the world. Membership in this International organization has exceeded 100,000 members. NSU is becoming one of these noted chapter members.

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