Pilot Grant 2024-25 Awardees

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Blue Awards ($20,000)

Drs. Takhar Kasumov (Associate Professor in Pharmaceutical Sciences, NEOMED) and Wilson Chung (Associate Professor in Biological Sciences, Kent State University)

• Alcohol-altered brain metabolism in a tauopathy mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease

Drs. Priya Raman (Associate Professor in Biomedical Sciences, NEOMED), Helen Piontkivska (Professor in Biological Sciences, Kent State University) and Sheila Fleming (Associate Professor in Pharmaceutical Sciences, NEOMED)

• Smooth muscle O-GlcNAcylation, cognitive function and AD pathology in diabetes

Drs. Rafaela Takeshita (Associate Professor in Anthropology, Kent State University), Chris Faulk (Associate Professor in Animal Science, University of Minnesota), Joe Simmons (Professor, MD Anderson Cancer Center) and Sarah Neal (Instructor, MD Anderson Cancer Center)

• Epigenetic programming of adrenal androgens by early life adversity and its role in modulating the HPA axis

Dr. Brian Trevelline (Assistant Professor in Biological Sciences, Kent State University)

• Investigating how the gut microbiome affects early-life brain development and behavior of wild birds

Gold Awards ($5,000)

Dr. Joseph Bedont (Biological Sciences, Kent State University)

• Are tanycytes a source of new hypothalamic neurons after major reproductive milestones?

Drs. Robert Clements and Elda Hegmann (Biological Sciences, Kent State University)

• A Liquid Crystalline “Flytrap” for Cancer Cells in the Brain

Dr. John Johnson (Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University)

• Neural Pathways that Mediate Reduced Motivation During Peripheral Inflammation

Drs. Dinah Qutob (Biological Sciences, Kent State University) and Adam Underwood (Math and Sciences, Walsh University)

• Pilot Study of SOX3 SUMOylation in Glioblastoma: Exploring Post-Translational Modifications and Their Role in Tumor Biology