- University News Archive - ��Vlog��ý Little Rock

Dill Named Technical Writer/Editor for ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences

John Hill — Fri, 17 Jun 2022 13:02:56 +0000

Annmarie Dill of Little Rock has wanted to become a writer since the age of 8. Ever since graduating from ��Vlog��ý Little Rock with a master’s degree in professional and technical writing, she’s pursued her dream as a freelance writer. Now Dill is working full-time as a technical writer and editor for ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences, a research center that advances the application of nanoscience and nanotechnology through research and outreach and accelerates technological innovations into practical applications for society. “I am very excited to take on this new and challenging position,” she said. “When I found out I got to write about science and nanotechnology, it was a very exciting moment for me. I knew I wanted to be a writer all my life, and scientific writing has always fascinated me. I’m grateful to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock and the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences for accepting me.” In her position, Dill is responsible for grant writing, technical writing related to manuscript publications and reports, community outreach, social media and website management, and communications and marketing work for the nanotechnology center. In addition to her work with the nanotechnology center, Dill has also been an instructor for the Department of Rhetoric and Writing for the last eight years. She is dedicated to combining her skills as a writer and instructor and often holds educational workshops for the graduate students who work in the nanotechnology center. The topics vary widely and have included writing, audience analysis, how to perform data-based searches, and the Socratic method. “I am very passionate about interdisciplinary work in academia,” she said. “I have pitched teaching a class on the rhetoric of science. I think it would be a huge benefit to have STEM students and writing students learning about interdisciplinary work together in the same class.”

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Graduate Follows in Family’s Footsteps

John Hill — Wed, 27 Apr 2022 14:00:47 +0000

For Ruby Trotter, graduating from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock has become a family tradition. Because she’s a double major in chemistry and Spanish, she will likely walk across the stage twice on May 14 – during the morning ceremony and in the afternoon. Joint degrees have also become a family tradition. “My mother, Idonia Mitchell Trotter (now Gardner), attended the University of Little Rock for undergraduate studies from fall 2002 to fall 2004 completing a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice as a first-generation college student,” Trotter said. “She is the youngest of eight children whose mother had only a 10th grade education and father with a 6th grade education.” Her mother was later accepted into the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law and concurrently accepted into the Master of Public Service program at the ��Vlog��ý Clinton School of Public Service. “In May 2009, she became the first ever joint JD/MPS degree recipient in the world,” Trotter said. “I am very proud of my mom and saw first-hand how ��Vlog��ý Little Rock positively impacted her career and our lives.” In addition, Trotter’s aunt Regatta Mitchell graduated from ��Vlog��ý Little Rock with a bachelor’s degree in health sciences. As she reflected on her own time at the university, Trotter said she’s had an incredible college experience. “I am so very blessed to have gone to school here and met such amazing people and have opportunities that I’d never dreamed of when I was in high school,” she said, adding that she’s been involved with the Baptist Collegiate Ministry, the Learning Assistant Program, the American Chemical Society, and many other campus groups. Trotter plans to apply to medical school in May and matriculate in 2023. “I would love to become a physician, specializing particularly in pediatrics, internal medicine, or emergency medicine,” she said. “During my gap year, I plan to move in with my husband in San Antonio, Texas, and will work either a research or public health position.” An accomplished violinist, Trotter (now Viera Corral) met her husband when they both played and made beautiful music together. “It’s been so cool to see my growth over the years, especially in high school where I was able to make Region Orchestra twice and play in the pit orchestra for two of our musicals,” she said. “This is actually where I met my husband, with him across from me playing viola. I love the violin and continue to use it as an outlet for the stress of my studies.” Trotter, whose other interests include nanomedicine, hiking, and learning new recipes, noted that she’s gotten a lot of help along the way to graduation. ”My motivations that have gotten me through these four years are my faith, my now-husband (as of March 2022), and support from incredible mentors, family, and friends,” she said. The Pine Bluff, Arkansas, native spent part of her childhood in Little Rock. She attended high school in Houston, Texas, before coming to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock through the Donaghey Scholars Honors Program. The highly selective honors program enrolls 25 new scholars each year. “I actually came into college as a pre-medical biology major four years ago,” she said. “Dr. Mark Baillie was my General Chemistry I and II professor, and he made the course so interactive and interesting that I had a lot of fun in it.” During a conversation, Dr. Baillie pointed out that she was gifted in chemistry and asked why she wasn’t majoring in it. “I told him that I always saw chemistry as a hard subject and that I really liked biology in high school,” she explained. “He urged me to not run away from something that I love, no matter how hard it is. And, after a few days thinking about it, I decided to go and declare my chemistry major.” Trotter added a Spanish major after volunteering at and seeing the intense need for interpreters for the Spanish-speaking patients. The clinic is a free, non-profit medical and dental clinic in Little Rock. That experience and the support of university faculty were phenomenal, she said. “��Vlog��ý Little Rock truly has some of the best mentors that I could ask for,” Trotter said. “I want to thank Dr. Shawn Bourdo for all of his support over the years, for helping me to grow and giving me a home at the nano center, and for becoming like family to me. I’d also love to thank Dr. Mark Baillie, Dr. Michael Moore, Dr. Simon Hawkins, Dr. Jessica Scott, Ms. Ronia Kattoum, and Dr. Noureen Siraj for their encouragement, mentorship, and support over these four years.” Her time at Harmony Health Clinic “has been the most meaningful thing I’ve been able to do in my undergraduate experience. From medical receptionist work towards the beginning, to now being able to serve as an interpreter on the team, I’ve had such a meaningful experience helping so many patients receive free health care.” She is thankful for the clinic’s executive director, Angela Harris, and all of her fellow clinic volunteers. “Without coming to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, I’m not sure if I would have been afforded the wealth of opportunities that I have been blessed to experience,” Trotter said. “The research done at our university is so engaging and interesting, and there is such an emphasis on getting undergraduate students involved in the laboratory,” she said, adding that her work at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences on campus has been so rewarding. Trotter was published as a second author in the Journal of Nanobiotechnology last year. “This is something that I absolutely have not heard of at many other universities, so I am thrilled to have been able to research with these other scientists and to get to know them so well over the last three years,” she said. “There is truly a family environment at the Nano Center.” While attending ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, Trotter has received several awards including the Service to the Chemistry Department Award for her efforts as a learning assistant and a Signature Experience Grant for her research at the Nano Center with Dr. Shawn Bourdo. She was also a Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship recipient, a very competitive and prestigious award for study abroad purposes, even though her travel plans were canceled due to COVID-19. In 2021, Trotter was inducted into the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society as one of the top graduating seniors. She also received another Signature Experience Grant, and won first place at the Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) conference for a poster presentation for her research on graphene nanomaterials and polymer biomaterials. She recently won an American Chemical Society (ACS) Local Outstanding Student Award and was honored as BA Chemistry Student of the Year at the Chemistry Department Award Ceremony on April 21. This story was written by Bobbie Handcock.

Spotlight on Nanotechnology Researchers: Ruby Trotter

John Hill — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 14:00:12 +0000

��Vlog��ý Little Rock is highlighting some of our student researchers in celebration of National Nanotechnology Day on Oct. 9. Ruby Trotter is an undergraduate student researcher at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. She is a recipient of a ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Signature Experience program, which awards students up to $1,000 to support a research project, creative activity, or community service project that is influential to their academic development. What is your Signature Experience project? We’ve been working with graphene, a nanomaterial that’s promising for bone tissue regeneration technologies. Graphene is a single layer of carbon that is shaped in a flat sheet with a honeycomb-like structure and has several good biomedical properties. Graphene is tiny, so we mix it into a solution of water and ethanol to get it evenly dispersed. We have made scaffolds for bone tissue regeneration and want to see how graphene would interact with the human body. Right now, we’re studying different pathways by which it would degrade the body, and are continuing to study how useful it would be for bone tissue regeneration in the future. Specifically, we’re using microscopic images and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy to study how graphene interacts with cells in the immune system and how it degrades over time in the cells. The UV-vis technique allows us to see how light is absorbed as it passes through the sample. Based on that, we can tell the concentration of the graphene mixture in the cells. That way, we can see how much the concentration of the mixture dropped degraded over time. What do you find most interesting about this project? I really enjoy the fact that this project incorporates a lot of chemistry and biology. After I graduate, I want to become a physician, and what I’m learning right now contributes to that goal. I love chemistry, and I appreciate that I get to explore biology along with it. I also think nanotechnology is fascinating, because you can take small materials and do big things. What is it like to work with your mentor, Dr. Shawn Bourdo? It’s really awesome to work with Dr. Bourdo. I started working with him in July 2019, the summer before my sophomore year. He’s always been very supportive and outgoing. No matter his schedule, he always accommodates me when I have questions. Even though some of my classes aren’t directly related to the work I do at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences, I have found a lot of topics that overlap with the work I do, and he has always been there to help me understand these concepts better. I always say I hit the mentor jackpot with Dr. Bourdo. How did you hear about the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences? I didn’t know much about nanotechnology when I first started here. Before my sophomore year, I was looking for research opportunities, and the previous student researcher under Dr. Bourdo reached out to me and told me about this position. What are your plans after graduation? I want to be a pediatrician and also enter the Master of Public Health program, because I am interested in addressing health disparities in different communities. After graduation, I plan to take a gap year to work as either an emergency medical technician or a medical scribe to gain experience in the field. After that, I plan to enter medical school in 2023.

Spotlight on Nanotechnology Researchers: Stephanie Gilchrist

John Hill — Fri, 08 Oct 2021 13:00:37 +0000

��Vlog��ý Little Rock is highlighting some of our student nanotechnology researchers in celebration of on Oct. 9. Stephanie Gilchrist is an undergraduate student researcher at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. A mechanical engineering major, she is a recipient of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Signature Experience program, which awards students up to $1,000 to support a research project, creative activity, or community service project that is influential to their academic development. What is your Signature Experience Project? We are working on creating hydrophobic and antimicrobial surfaces using materials technology and surface technology. An antimicrobial surface is a surface that kills bacteria. A hydrophobic surface is a self-cleaning surface that repels water. It works similarly to beads of water on leaves. What inspired you to work on this project? I began this project right when the COVID-19 pandemic started, so I was inspired to find a way to create self-cleaning surfaces. I am excited to see how this project can be applied in real life and help people keep surfaces clean, especially in hospitals. What is it like to work with your mentor, Dr. Ganesh Kannarpady? Dr. Ganesh is wonderful. He has really guided me with coming up with this project and applying for the Signature Experience program. Because of him, I am able to have my name on a paper before I graduate, which is wonderful. I am also grateful to other researchers who contributed to this project and helped me: Ahmed Hashoosh, Malik Muhi, and Molly White. How did you hear about the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences? I was looking for a job, ideally related to my field. My friend was working for them at the time and persuaded me to apply. Dr. Alexandru Biris, the director of the center, is the coolest. He fosters a wonderful family-like environment of everyone helping everyone. I think anyone interested in working in a research environment should talk to him. What are your plans after graduation? I am interested in the business side of mechanical engineering. This summer I will begin an internship with Southwest Power Pool, a nonprofit electric utility company in Little Rock. I hope to work there after I graduate.

New grant, National Fellowship for ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Nanotechnology Researcher

John Hill — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 14:06:23 +0000

Dr. K. Bao Vang-Dings, research assistant professor at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, is ringing in the summer with exciting news. In May, the American Association of Immunologists (AAI) named Vang-Dings one of its nine 2021-22 Public Policy Fellows. Additionally, the Arkansas IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) has awarded her a 2021 Summer Research Grant. The $36,593 INBRE grant will support Vang-Dings’ cancer vaccine research, as well as an undergraduate research assistant to aid the project. For the next three months, Vang-Dings and her student assistant will investigate the ability of a unique nanoparticle-based system to fight melanoma. This nanosystem is designed to work in concert with the body’s immune system to trigger an aggressive reaction against tumor cells. This type of technique, called “immunotherapy,” boosts the body’s own natural defense (immune cells) against cancer. Existing immunotherapy-based approaches have a very low patient response rate. Vang-Dings seeks to disrupt this statistic with the unique multi-component system she and her colleagues have created. The nanosystem builds on the ongoing plasmonic nanoparticle research at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. Dr. Zeid Nima Al Sudani, research associate professor, will lend his nanomaterial expertise to the project. If successful, this nanosystem-based vaccine may one day be the first of its kind for melanoma treatment and prevention. While the nature of research means that such success is likely far down the road, Vang-Dings is excited to begin this crucial next phase of her research this summer. “If we are successful, our nano-based cancer vaccine could not only improve melanoma treatment, but it may be useful to treat other cancers as well,” Vang-Dings said. Vang-Dings’ desire to improve human health is reflected in her recent AAI fellowship appointment. According to the association’s website, “the PPFP provides early-career researchers, who are within 15 years of receiving their terminal degree and who are committed to a career in biomedical research, with the opportunity to learn about and participate in the public policy and legislative activities of AAI.” As a Public Policy Fellow, Vang-Dings will be educated on and actively participate in the collaboration that exists between the scientific community and the government. The fellowship includes a trip to Washington, D.C., to meet with members of Congress and receive additional training. The end goal of the fellowship is equipping participants to advocate for biomedical research and its continued growth in the public policy sphere. Vang-Dings, who received her doctoral degree from the University of Minnesota, has been at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock for around seven years, during which time she has been a mentor, an author on 15 peer-reviewed publications, and the recipient of a 2018 Arkansas Economic Development Commission seed grant through the National Science Foundation-supported Center for Advanced Surface Engineering.

Nanotechnology research in skin generation lands ��Vlog��ý Little Rock grad job at Columbia University

John Hill — Mon, 14 Dec 2020 17:42:03 +0000

Ingrid Safina, an applied biosciences doctoral student, will graduate in December with a Ph.D. from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, multiple published papers, and a job offer from Columbia University. Safina first joined ��Vlog��ý Little Rock in 2009 as an undergraduate student intent on a career in medicine. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree, she began pursuing a doctoral degree in applied biosciences. In 2016, she joined the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences (CINS) as a graduate research assistant. At the center, Safina received hands-on mentoring and training in biomedical research with a focus on skin regeneration. For the next four years, she investigated new ways to use nanoscale materials to regenerate skin. These techniques are designed to help patients who have lost significant amounts of skin due to burns, disease, and trauma. While skin grafts are the most common treatment for such serious wounds, this method isn’t always safe and effective for all patients. Synthetic material-based methods like Safina’s could be a more accessible solution. This biomedical research allowed Safina to combine her academic studies with her desire for a career in the medical field. As her research progressed, so did her motivation. “It has been my longest dream to work in the medical field,” Safina said. “My original motivation was the value associated with it. The medical field is very highly regarded everywhere and particularly in my native country, Rwanda. My parents encouraged me to pursue it, and I did because I wanted to make my family proud. Now, my motivation has changed a little bit. I am motivated because of the success I have been able to achieve and the many possibilities ahead to contribute to the scientific world, specifically in finding new therapies that work and preserve good health.” Under the mentorship of Dr. Bao Vang-Dings, research assistant professor, and Dr. Alexandru Biris, director of the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences, Safina has published one peer-reviewed paper as first author and another as co-author, with more in progress. “Watching Ingrid grow as a student and a person over the past four years has been a privilege,” Biris said. “Her curiosity and strong work ethic make her a great scientist, and I’m looking forward to seeing what she does next. We’re pleased that working at the Nano Center was a positive, influential part of her journey.” Vang-Dings said that she enjoyed watching Safina grow from a student to a scientist with a promising future. “It is always encouraging to see the metamorphosis of students as they transition into independent Ph.D. scientists,” Vang-Dings said. “When Ingrid and I first met, she understood the theory and practice of the scientific process but did not actively participate in it. Over time, I’ve watched her take ownership of her projects as she transitioned into a fully independent scientist through hard work and determination. I am fortunate to have had a role in her scientific development, and I wish her only the best success in the next phase of her scientific career.” Safina says that her time at CINS has been transformative both professionally and personally. “I am deeply thankful for the amazing opportunities I found at CINS to grow as a researcher,” she said. “My experience here has helped me become confident to pursue my dreams, encourage others, and be a role model for accomplishing efficient work in a timely manner. Our advisors and the CINS staff are great models in those areas—confidence and leadership.” For Safina, who grew up in Rwanda and came to Arkansas to pursue higher education, being a part of the Nanotechnology Center also gave her a sense of family—a vital feeling for people without their biological families close by, she says. Now, Safina will once again make a major move to pursue her dreams in New York. She has accepted a position as a postdoctoral research scientist in the College of Dental Medicine at Columbia University. At Columbia, she will work on a wide variety of projects that utilize the skills she earned at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. “I am so thankful for the hard work that the CINS staff does to help us finish our degrees with vast knowledge and skills that make us very competitive in the workforce,” Safina said.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Student researches improving and prolonging human life

John Hill — Mon, 13 Jul 2020 19:07:02 +0000

The path to becoming a researcher takes many different forms. For ��Vlog��ý Little Rock student William King, it all started with a fifth-grade plot to take over the world. A lofty dream, but the Bradford, Arkansas, native was practical about it — the first step had to be, of course, a quest for immortality. However, unlike other kids his age, King wasn’t interested in fountains of youth or magical potions. “I wanted to research the longevity of the human life,” he said. “I was always interested in ‘how close are we to being immortal?’” These questions introduced young King to biology, awakening a curiosity that would eventually lead him to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. As a science-minded, academically gifted high school student, King’s immortality quest had matured into a simpler but nobler desire — to prolong and improve human life. As a result, he wanted biological research to be the focus of his college career. While ��Vlog��ý Fayetteville and Hendrix College were options, King was swayed by the advanced research taking place at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, specifically in the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. “I knew coming to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock was a choice purely because of this building. We had the nanotech center, and that’s what I wanted,” he said. The nano center’s tissue regeneration research had caught King’s eye, but he wasn’t sure how to get involved. Lucky for him, the Science Scholars program he participated in, run by professor Jim Winters, visited the center for a tour during his first semester at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. The group listened to scientist Dr. Shawn Bourdo describe the center’s bone regeneration research and how integral students are to the work. William was riveted, immediately connecting tissue regeneration with his goal of prolonging human life. When the group moved on to the next portion of the tour, King hung back, walked up to Dr. Bourdo, and said something along the lines of “How can I get in on this?” In a stroke of serendipity, the center had recently received a grant from the Department of Defense to advance its bone regeneration platform. This grant just so happened to include funding for an undergraduate researcher. And the rest, as they say, is history. King worked at the nano center for the next three years, gaining invaluable hands-on mentoring, laboratory training, and research experience. He earned two Signature Experience Awards for his research and was listed as a co-author on a peer-reviewed journal article. Despite these noteworthy accomplishments, King says that his favorite part of working at the nano center was the friendships that developed with his coworkers, especially Dr. Bourdo, who became his primary mentor, and graduate students Bailey Jackson and Chris Griffin. “It felt like a family in its own right,” King says. King received a bachelor’s degree in biology in May 2019, graduating in three years instead of the usual four. After taking a well-deserved gap year, he’s returning to ��Vlog��ý Little Rock to pursue a doctoral degree in the fall of 2020. “I thought about how I did want to discover more and learn all that I could. I decided on ��Vlog��ý Little Rock because it honestly felt like home,” he said. King will be pursuing a Ph.D. in Applied Biosciences, but his goals are reminiscent of his fifth-grade self. “My hope is to use the knowledge I gain to begin working on learning how to reverse aging,” he said. “If I could make the world a better place, I would be happy.”

U.S. Department of Defense awards ��Vlog��ý Little Rock $5.6 million grant to develop bone regeneration technology

Ajani Oyindamola — Thu, 24 Oct 2019 14:52:39 +0000

The U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has awarded the University of Arkansas at Little Rock a $5.6 million grant to advance the NuCress scaffold, a groundbreaking bone regeneration technology.

The grant brings together an interdisciplinary team from ��Vlog��ý Little Rock, led by principal investigator Dr. Alex Biris; the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, led by Dr. David Anderson; and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (��Vlog��ýMS), led by Dr. Mark Smeltzer.

Biris and Anderson have worked together since 2006 to develop this pioneering medical device. The NuCress scaffold is in the final stages of moving from the laboratory to the surgical theater, with potential future uses in both military and civilian hospitals. The new award from the DOD’s Joint Warfighter Medical Research Program will help facilitate this transition by funding critical go-to-market research.

U.S. Sen. John Boozman, who supported the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock proposal to the DOD and was instrumental in securing federal funding for the project’s earlier research, congratulated the team on the award.

“Bone regeneration technology is so important to the recovery of our warfighters from severe injuries,” Boozman said. “��Vlog��ý Little Rock and its partners have made tremendous progress taking this novel nanotechnology solution from the laboratory to the point of clinical trials.”

The NuCress scaffold is an implantable device that promotes controlled, robust bone regeneration in fractures, gaps where bone is missing, and major injury defects, including previously untreatable catastrophic injuries. The device degrades as the bone regenerates, potentially eliminating the need for multiple surgeries-a major source of complications in current bone gap treatments.

“I’m thrilled to see over a decade of collaborative work result in this continued DOD support, and I look forward to seeing it develop into a clinically beneficial product,” said Biris, director of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences.

Such a device is in high demand by a wide variety of people, including wounded soldiers, victims of major accidents and trauma, and patients with bone disease.

“The NuCress scaffold is a game-changing technology that will revolutionize treatment of bone diseases because it is capable of simultaneously promoting bone regeneration and delivering antibiotics, growth factors, and cell-based therapies,” Anderson said.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock Chancellor Christina Drale said the grant will help the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences fulfill its mission to accelerate world-class innovations in nanotechnology into practical applications that will benefit society.

“This new funding from the Department of Defense will help our research team fulfill that mission in this particularly exciting area of nanotechnology for medical applications,” Drale said.

Studies funded by past DOD awards proved the scaffold’s versatility and ability to regenerate large, missing segments of bone. The new, four-year DOD award will support pre-market work, including manufacturing and U.S. Food and Drug Administration clearance. If successful, the project will allow the scaffold to move toward clinical trials, validate its utility for clinicians, and develop a new market application for treating infection.

Smeltzer, the research team’s infection expert, looks forward to this new market potential.

“Infection is a dreaded complication of traumatic bone injury, and the ability to incorporate antibiotics into the NuCress scaffold offers the tremendous added benefit of preventing infection in a contaminated bone defect without compromising its bone regenerative properties,” Smeltzer said.

The U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, 839 Chandler Street, Fort Detrick, MD 21702-5014 is the awarding and administering acquisition office. This work is supported by the Department of Defense, through the Joint Warfighter Medical Research Program under Award No. W81XWH1920014. Opinions, interpretations, conclusions and recommendations are those of the author and are not necessarily endorsed by the Department of Defense.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock employees ride Tour de Rock in honor of vice chancellor’s brother

Ajani Oyindamola — Fri, 21 Jun 2019 15:32:11 +0000

Nine employees from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock rode nearly 550 miles in honor of a vice chancellor’s brother who is battling cancer. Steve McClellan, ��Vlog��ý Little Rock vice chancellor for finance and administration, sponsored the employees to ride the on June 1 in honor of his brother, Bruce McClellan, who is battling lung cancer. CARTI’s 16th annual Tour de Rock supports CARTI’s continued fight against cancer by providing the most advanced forms of treatment available while also meeting the needs of patients and their families. Nearly 1,000 cyclists rode one of four routes of 25, 50, 62, or 100 miles. This is the second year that McClellan has sponsored a team of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock cyclists to ride the Tour de Rock and raise money for cancer. Last year, the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock team rode nearly 500 miles in honor of Bruce McClellan. “One of the most touching things about the event is that you get to write the name of a person who is fighting cancer on your shirt,” said Martial Trigeaud, business consultant with the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center and faculty advisor of the ��Vlog��ý Little Rock Cycling Club. “This year, we wrote the name of Steve’s brother, Bruce. Many people also wrote the name of another friend or relative, someone they love, who has faced cancer.” ��Vlog��ý Little Rock employees and students who rode in the Tour de Rock include Alex Biris, director of the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences; Thomas Bunton, associate vice chancellor and chief information officer; Molly Castner, deputy athletic director and senior woman administrator; Emilie Darrigues, a Ph.D. student of applied science; John Evans, senior associate athletic director for facilities and events; Ian Hadden, director of energy management services; Ashton Hale, a criminal justice graduate student; Sean Orme, a Ph.D. student in computer science; and Trigeaud. One of ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s riders, Hadden, even took on the special challenge of riding in the pace group, where cyclists complete 100 miles in under 5 hours. Hadden finished 100 miles in 4:54:03 and burned 8,680 calories in that time.

Faculty, staff, and students from ��Vlog��ý Little Rock rode the Tour de Rock in honor of Steve McClellan’s brother, Bruce.

��Vlog��ý Little Rock student wins awards for research into treatment of pancreatic cancer using nanomedicine

Ajani Oyindamola — Wed, 12 Jun 2019 12:58:48 +0000

A University of Arkansas at Little Rock doctoral student is receiving accolades for her research studying 3D models for the treatment of pancreatic cancer using nanomedicine. Emilie Darrigues, a doctoral student in applied science-chemistry, studies how plasmonic nanoparticles, some designed to deliver medicine targeting cancer cells, interact with cell cultures in a 3D model through her work as a graduate research assistant in the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences. Since the center receives funding through the Arkansas EPSCoR program, the center’s researchers participated in the Center for Advanced Surface Engineering (CASE) conference, where Darrigues received the first place award in the graduate student poster competition. In addition to the award, Darrigues received a $1,500 travel grant to attend the national EPSCoR conference in South Carolina in October. The Arkansas National Science Foundation (NSF) EPSCoR program is a multi-institutional, interdisciplinary, statewide grant program leveraging $24 million over five years to expand research, workforce development, and science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) educational outreach in Arkansas. The Center for Advanced Surface Engineering (CASE), is designed to strengthen research in Arkansas with national significance and major economic development. Darrigues received bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and rheology/functional materials in France, followed by four years of industrial work in research and development and lean manufacturing. While pursuing a master’s degree in engineering in France, Darrigues interned at the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences in summer 2013. She was so impressed with ��Vlog��ý Little Rock that she knew she wanted to pursue a doctoral degree here, which she began in 2015. “You have very skilled people here with a lot of knowledge,” she said. “I have a lot of support that allows me to build a very good research project, but I can also be very independent. I was very happy to discover that with ��Vlog��ý Little Rock. I am very lucky to work at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock and the nanotechnology center, and I was lucky to find a mentor like Dr. Alexandru Biris (director of the Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences). He trains us to be researchers, not just Ph.D. students.” Darrigues also presented her research project, “Interaction of Drug pH-Responsive Gold Nanorods in ‘Big’ 3D Pancreatic Microtumors Using Fluorescence, Photoacoustic and Photothermal Microscopies,” at ��Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Research and Creative Works Expo on April 18. She received first place in the graduate life sciences category. Darrigues plans to graduate in May 2020. Afterward, she plans to find a postdoctoral research position where she can continue her research using nanoparticles to treat cancer. She is inspired to improve treatment for pancreatic cancer since the disease has low survival rates. According to the American Cancer Society, pancreatic cancer is considered largely incurable with a five-year survival rate of just 5 percent. “The goal of 3D models, spheroids, or organoids mimicking the human body or real cancer tumors is really to try to have an additional ex-vivo step before we go to in-vivo; 3D might support ‘precision medicine’ or personalized therapy,” Darrigues said. “Our next job will be focused on the functionalization of the nanoparticle to increase its interaction with the 3D cancer system in order to optimize our therapeutic approach to treat efficiently the pancreatic cancer cells.”

- University News Archive - ����Vlog��ý Little Rock

Dill Named Technical Writer/Editor for ����Vlog��ý Little Rock’s Center for Integrative Nanotechnology Sciences

����Vlog��ý Little Rock Graduate Follows in Family’s Footsteps

Spotlight on Nanotechnology Researchers: Ruby Trotter

Spotlight on Nanotechnology Researchers: Stephanie Gilchrist

New grant, National Fellowship for ����Vlog��ý Little Rock Nanotechnology Researcher

Nanotechnology research in skin generation lands ����Vlog��ý Little Rock grad job at Columbia University

����Vlog��ý Little Rock Student researches improving and prolonging human life

U.S. Department of Defense awards ����Vlog��ý Little Rock $5.6 million grant to develop bone regeneration technology

����Vlog��ý Little Rock employees ride Tour de Rock in honor of vice chancellor’s brother

����Vlog��ý Little Rock student wins awards for research into treatment of pancreatic cancer using nanomedicine