By Jill Wilson
Every day at WVU, professors
are working on highly technical, intricate research projects
that can and are changing the world in which we live for the
better. They manage to do this even as they teach others to do
what they do, and to stretch beyond the existing theories.
Their research may affect the water you drink today or the food
you eat tomorrow. It may be the technology they develop is the
one that saves your life.
And they are a key ingredient to what many see as the future
in West Virginia's economy.
"I think research programs in general are unique, the ones
that are active," says Richard Dey, a professor of anatomy
in the WVU School of Medicine. "The people working in them
all have developed a unique perspective to study whatever it
is they are studying. The quality (at WVU) compares with any
program at that level. We're all competing for the same dollars
and publishing in the same journals and being reviewed by the
same editors as anyone else. The only difference between WVU
and a place much larger is the scale, not the quality of work."
WVU has a special role in West Virginia because it is the state's
only major research institution (classified by the Carnegie Foundation
nationally as a Doctoral/Research UniversityExtensive) and
it is competitive with institutions across the nation. Students
can only benefit from this.
"I really think our graduate programs give opportunities
to students in West Virginia," Dey said. "WVU provides
a unique opportunity to go into science and to do the research.
Without a research institution, students don't have that kind
of exposure."
The role of research goes far beyond a learning process for students
and faculty, however.
"Rational treatment of a disease is understanding how to
treat it based on the nature of the disease. That's what our
research programs provide," Dey said. "I think it's
difficult for the public to see that because what researchers
do isn't exactly to define what the treatment is. They define
the biology so the treatment can be found."
Breathing Easier
Dey's research is a case in point. Dey is trying to determine
what factors contribute to asthma, which is on the increase but
no one is really sure why. Specifically, he is seeking to identify
whether nerves play a role in developing and triggering asthma.
Nerves that are stimulated in some way, such as by a virus or
pollutant, release chemicals, or neurotransmitters, which in
turn cause a reaction from the body. Dey is trying to determine
what happens to create the chemical release, or stimulation of
the neurotransmitters, and then what occurs once they are released.
The key is not necessarily in the activation of the neurotransmitters;
the key is, once they are activated, what causes their activation
to subside in normal cases and not in others.
"The activation of these neurotransmitters is a protective
response. Anybody would have that kind of response," Dey
said. "The asthmatic is different because the reaction doesn't
subside as it should. It continues for a prolonged period of
time."
Dey also wants to know whether exposure to certain pollutants
or viruses or other environmental matter at certain ages plays
a factor.
"It's not just that it's more severe. It actually does something
that causes the disease to be more severe later," he said.
"One study shows that the level of innervation (release
of neurotransmitters) increases for about the first month of
a child's life. I'm hypothesizing that an exposure during that
period of time will have an influence on the final pattern of
the nerves in the airway."
So, an infant who is exposed to certain conditions in its first
month would be more affected, perhaps, and more likely to have
asthma than an infant who is older, he said.
This issue is of particular interest in West Virginia because
the state has industrial environments that may cause worker sensitivity
to respiratory ailments. It is making a direct link between the
research being conducted and the industry that stands to benefit
from it, which is another important aspect of the value of research.
Spawning New Industry
This ancillary economic benefit goes to the heart of research
underway by John Killefer, an associate professor in animal and
veterinary sciences in the WVU College of Agriculture, Forestry,
and Consumer Sciences. Killefer is engaged in studying the genes
of fish, particularly trout, to help the production process of
fish and other aquatic life—a process called aquaculture.
"We're trying to get a better understanding of the genetic
basis of reproduction, nutrition, growth, disease resistance,
and quality characteristics of the trout so that fish can be
produced at an optimum level, providing the best quality and
the greatest quantity of fish," Killefer said.
The economics of aquaculture represents enormous potential. About
60 percent of all the seafood consumed in the United States is
imported, and that means the basis of this research could result
in the creation of a whole new industry in West Virginia.
"Aquaculture is the fastest-growing sector of agriculture
in the United States," Killefer said. "Most seafood
and seafood products have been harvested: collected by fishermen
from oceans or large lakes. The current and projected demand
for food fish exceeds our capacity to do that. Many of the species
are over-harvested already. Therefore, much of the production
now and in the future is going to rely on aquaculture."
Advances in aquaculture depend largely upon how much is understood
about the genetics of fish, which is where Killefer comes in.
He is working to develop a genetic "map" that will
allow farmers to select lines of fish that have desirable traits
such as strong growth, disease resistance, and feed-efficiency,
similar to the way vegetables, fruit, poultry, and meat are grown
based on their strengths.
"In trout, for example, there's a huge gene pool,"
he said. "What we are trying to do is be able to have a
means of identifying all those genes in the gene pool and bring
those together to make a genetically superior fish. We're not
doing anything nature doesn't do; we're just trying to do it
faster and in a controlled fashion."
Killefer likens it to finding cities on a road map.
"What we're trying to do is find the cities (genes) on our
genetic map and we're also trying to put down a lot of mile markers
along the way," he said. "It's estimated most vertebrates
have 80,000 to 100,000 genes. We are by no means close to understanding
what all those genes do. We have an understanding of approximately
10 percent.
"Once we have all these markers down, we can start looking
for what are called quantitative trait loci. A locus is a region
that has genes in it associated with the traits we want,"
he said. "So, by making these maps, we don't really have
to have an understanding of the genes. We can actually find the
genetic area that contains those genes and determine what all
they do at that point by associating them with genes of known
function."
This "comparative genomics" approach allows scientists
to take advantage of research derived from human genome mapping;
the reverse is also true, Killefer said. What he discovers in
trout genomes also may be applicable and useful in genetic studies
of humans, cows, or other vertebrate species because most genes
are similar throughout the animal kingdom.
Killefer said the project evolved from the interest in aquaculture
by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research
Service, which is constructing a new facility in the Eastern
Panhandle to serve as the National Center for Cool and Cold Water
Aquaculture. Fish are there as well as at WVU for the study.
"It really holds a lot of promise for West Virginia and
Appalachia because of the water resources available in this area,
and also the access to the Northeastern population base. Most
of the trout are produced in the Northwest, probably close to
70 percent," Killefer said. "There has been an interest
in expanding the production of trout in West Virginia and the
Appalachian region because we have access to that huge population
base."
The potential of the industry is in the millions of dollars.
"Just in the trout industry you are probably approaching
the $100 million range," Killefer said. "When you consider
all of the seafood that must be imported and its role as one
of the United States' top trade deficits, it's probably in the
billions of dollars."
Sensing Impurities
Another project underway at WVU has similar positive economic
potential: the development of microchip sensors that can be applied
to numerous uses. Larry Hornak, an associate professor in WVU's
Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering,
specializes in the ballooning field of microtechnology and nanotechnology.
"Essentially, it's like taking all that you do on a chemistry
lab bench or optical table and shrinking it down to a microchip
the size of a postage stamp," said Hornak, who also is the
research director in his department.
Hornak is working with a start-up company called Multi-Sense
to develop a micro-small device that could sense water quality
to determine such things as bacteria content. It could be used
either in the home or in municipal water systems, for example.
From the underlying biotechnology, sensors could be developed
for a variety of uses, particularly in the medical field, he
said.
"The project really is a poster child for the role the University
can play in economic development," Hornak said. "Bringing
together the researchers and lab capabilities for such a venture
is often difficult and very expensive for a start-up company.
So, Multi-Sense is partnering with WVU to provide part of the
research support and prototyping the sensor as well as leasing
lab space on campus for its activities.
"That way, the University becomes an incubator, which is
a great value to the company because it can take advantage of
the facilities and the expertise of its individuals. This accelerates
their commercialization efforts and infuses the latest technology
into the process."
Research and development of this type of sensor at WVU can spur
spin-off suppliers and users to locate in the region if the venture
is successful and because the company is located near the University,
he said.
"Faculty at a university who are working at the cutting
edge of the field and parlaying that to economic development,
that's kind of what it's all about," Hornak said. "Students
involved in the research are the real beneficiaries. That's critical."
Multiple Disciplines,
Multiplied Value
Such valuable research and science training enhances WVU graduates'
careers immensely, Dey agreed. One of the anatomy professor's
graduate students, for example, won a post-doctoral position
at the Johns Hopkins University asthma and allergy center because
of experience in WVU research projects.
"She is a representative, an ambassador, and carries forward
the quality of our programs, of our educational system,"
Dey said. "There are people like her from all over the United
States in that center. She interacts with people from a lot of
different countries. People hear about West Virginia University
because of her presence there."
Killefer agrees, pointing to students from his genetics research
who are involved with related projects at other institutions,
federal research labs such as the Freshwater Institute and the
National Fisheries Health Lab in West Virginia, and a European
connection, called SalMap.
"This type of genetic research is very beneficial to the
University as a whole and also is consistent with the efforts
in the new WVU Neurosciences Institute and at the National Institute
for Occupational Safety and Health here in town. For students
who learn this type of science, it provides enormous opportunities,"
he said.
Student exposure often is much broader than a single project
or discipline. In Hornak's research, for example, he has joint
projects with other researchers that involve optical sensors
and, on the chemistry side, synthetic compounds and molecular
structures.
"It all fits together. By drawing in people from other areas
of expertise, the interdisciplinary pieces necessary for success
are being put together in this biosensor effort," he said.
The Multi-Sense water sensor does involve aspects of other disciplines.
But most intriguing to Hornak, perhaps, is the potential that
exists for affecting health.
"Applying the biosensor to water-quality applications is
Multi-Sense's initial focus because of the mass market,"
he said. "Worldwide every year there is a tremendous amount
of illness due to poor water and food quality. With this new
biosensor technology, at home, one could actually test for the
presence of bacteria. Then, look at it in terms of generic food
quality, testing meats and other food products where harmful
bacteria are a concern. You could have a significant impact on
the wellness of the population."
It is just a piece of a larger movement in nanotechnology and
biotechnology that involves identification: whether it is of
people, bacteria, diseases, or DNA.
"This is part of a larger effort to create a linkage of
chemistry, health sciences, and electrical engineering,"
he said. "Your computer, right now, is built of a lot of
silicon, but as we move into the next century you will see much
more biology, initially as sensing and eventually in a computational
sense. It's important for computer and electrical engineers to
explore how biology, optics, and electronics can work together.
Ultimately, that's what computers will be all about."
Identifying the Unique
Hornak is assisting in a project headed by Stephanie Caswell
Schuckers, an assistant professor in the WVU computer science
and electrical engineering department, to enhance the performance
of a sophisticated microchip fingerprint sensor for biometric
identification systems.
"These systems identify individuals based on their unique
characteristics, such as their irises, face, voice, or fingerprint,
and are quickly becoming a key part of automatic teller machines,
and even home computers," Hornak said. "Right now,
the application is secure access for Internet banking and e-commerce.
Soon, it may be to enable computers to identify, respond, and
adapt to their users."
These types of biometric systems—the use of a human body
characteristic for identification—are of increasing market
interest because of the potential security they provide and their
convenience, Schuckers said.
"The nice thing about them is you don't have to remember
a password, you don't have to carry a card, you won't need keys,"
she said. "One of the problems with current technology is
that there are some people who want to circumvent it by figuring
out a password or stealing your keys and making duplicates."
Schuckers is developing a biometric system that determines how
to get around such "spoofs" of identification. The
work concentrates on a fingerprint and developing a sensor that
can distinguish between the real thing and a fake: determining
that the fingerprint is being provided by a living source.
The project, which was funded by Veridicom Inc., a Silicon Valley
company, is a piece of a larger field in which she works: biomedical
signal processing. It allows her to combine her engineering background
with biology.
"Biomedical signals are data collected from the human body
that change over time—typically, something changing within
a second, like a heartbeat or the amount of oxygen in your blood.
The processing is what you do to understand it and make a medical
diagnosis," Schuckers said.
She is working to improve a device that is designed to help patients
at risk of a certain type of heart attack, an event called ventricular
fibrillation.
"Instead of a rhythmic, repeating beat it is a chaotic,
random activity of the heart. Because it is chaotic, it is not
adequately pumping blood to the body," Schuckers said. "When
you are in this condition, you need a defibrillation shock. Cardiopulmonary
resuscitation only provides a mechanical means of making the
heart pump, but it won't cure it. You need a defibrillation shock
to treat the fibrillation."
The key, medically, is to administer this shock within a few
minutes of the attack's onset. People who don't receive this
treatment within ten minutes have only a ten percent chance of
survival, she said.
A device similar to a heart pacemaker can be implanted to deliver
defibrillation shocks. Schuckers, with support from the American
Heart Association and the National Science Foundation, now is
trying to improve on this device, which is sold commercially.
"It is good at finding out when you have fibrillation. But
sometimes it processes signals incorrectly and you get a shock
when you don't need it. First, this is extremely painful to the
patient. The second problem is that false shocks actually can
initiate fibrillation when that occurs," she said. "The
third problem is the battery. The more it is shocking the quicker
the battery is going to run out."
Schuckers is working on these issues, using laboratory experiments
and data analysis of the signals the body sends surrounding a
ventricular fibrillation event.
Data analysis also forms the foundation of Schuckers's research
and led her to work on a problem highlighted by a National Institutes
of Health study—the Collaborative Home Infant Monitoring
Evaluation—completed last year. It centers on a device that
monitors infants at risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or
SIDS. The monitors have been in use for more than 20 years, but
the death rate from SIDS essentially has remained unchanged.
During the study, monitors were given to parents of more than
1,000 infants to place on their children during sleep for as
long as the child's first six months. The human signals occurring
in the infants during that period were recorded.
"For someone like me who is trying to analyze biomedical
signals, that provides a very rich data set to study," Schuckers
said.
It is too early to draw conclusions, but it has led her to focus
on determining medical events that are predictive of life-threatening
events in infants, she said.
Students are deeply involved in her research projects, and their
motivation is similar to hers: helping people.
Serving Society
Schuckers's work, as well as the work of Hornak, Killefer, Dey,
and dozens of other WVU professors, has huge potential positive
effects in the lives of people across the country, but it is
especially relevant to West Virginia, too.
More than 400,000 people in the United States die of heart attack
from ventricular fibrillation each year. West Virginia has one
of the highest rates of heart disease in the nation, so any improvement
Schuckers makes to the defibrillation device, for example, holds
hope for heart disease victims.
Schuckers and Hornak's biometrics research ties closely to a
growing industry in West Virginia: forensics. West Virginia has
fingerprint and identification- related facilities, and WVU established
the world's first forensic identification degree with concentrations
in biometrics and latent fingerprint identification.
It also is a targeted area for development in West Virginia and
it incorporates the different elements that come together to
yield true economic growth: private companies, government, education,
and research.
"The simplest form (of economic development) is to develop
a technology and a company in West Virginia markets it,"
Schuckers said. "Then, you also have companies that are
deciding, 'Where am I going to locate? I want to be in a place
where there are a lot of other companies like me, where government
agencies are in related fields, and where higher education supports
it.'
"If we are doing research in that field, they want to be
near us because of the technology we develop and the students
we graduate," Schuckers said.
This concept brings Hornak to the point that researchers such
as those at WVU are accomplishing feats that can and are changing
the world in which we live.
"It always comes back in some form to benefit the community,"
he said, "and that loop is critical to WVU's role in society."