UAMS has received a five-year, $11.48 million federal grant to establish a center to study the molecular features and properties of biomolecules that drive cancer.
The Center for Molecular Interactions in Cancer and its researchers will use high-resolution imaging with precise, quantitative analysis to “gain deep molecular-level insights into the mechanisms that govern the initiation, progression and treatment of cancer,” Robert Eoff, a professor in the UAMS College of Medicine who will lead the center, said in a statement.
“Essentially, we’re digging down to the level beneath the body’s organs to study the components of the cell — the molecules and even the atoms within them — to understand what makes a cancer cell cancerous,” he said.
The grant comes from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) program. The grants are awarded to establish centers of research excellence around a specific scientific theme that will ultimately become self-sustaining.
UAMS said the grant will strengthen its cancer research infrastructure with the creation of two research cores, each with highly specialized equipment for cancer research.
They are:
The structural biology core, which will assist research project leaders with sample preparation, instrumentation and computational resources required for 3D high resolution structural studies
The biomolecular interactions core, which will provide quantitative analysis of macromolecular interactions and dynamics down to the level of single molecules
The center will have a formal faculty development program where seasoned UAMS researchers mentor junior investigators. It will also offer researchers access to highly advanced technologies like cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM), which uses high speed electrons to view high resolution images from frozen samples.
“In the past, we were limited in the types of molecules we could investigate, but recent advances, especially in cryo-EM, now allow us to study a wider array of molecules,” Eoff said. “Another barrier was related to the incredibly challenging and labor-intensive nature of these types of studies. To improve the speed and capacity of our workflow, artificial intelligence and robotics will also be incorporated into the center’s processes.”
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