FEBRUARY 2015
Office of Research Newsletter
Volume 2, Issue 2
The chart above and the story below are a reprint from ENGAGED, the official Tumblr of CSU.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CSU's R&D Expenditures Up
371% Over Five Years
New Faculty Member
Secures External Funding
Over $390,000 Funds
Engineering Research
Workshop on the Logistics of
Proposal Development
CSU Scholar News
Red5 Pharmaceuticals
Receives Another $60,000
Announcing a New Funding
Opportunity - MIRP
Deadlines Approaching for
FRD, FSI, and DRA
CSU's Research and Development
Expenditures up 371% Over Five Years
Cleveland State University has advanced nine places to
No. 174 in the National Science Foundation's Higher
Education Research and Development Survey. This marks
the third consecutive year that CSU ranks among the top 20
percent of universitiesin the United States for R&D.
The new ranking is based on CSU's overall R&D
expenditures of $67.4 million for the 2013 fiscal year
covered by the latest NSF survey, which is the primary
source of information on R&D spending at higher-education
institutions.
Adjusted for inflation, higher education R&D increased by
less than 0.5 percent in 2013, according to the NSF. In stark
contrast to the national trend, CSU's R&D expenditures
increased by more than 10 percent between 2012 and 2013
- and by 371 percent from 2009 to 2013.
Summer Research Award
Proposals Under Review
Meet CSU's New
Research Faculty
Featured Researcher
Video Series
NIH News - New Biographical
Sketch Format
Web of Science-Google
Scholar Collaboration
"Our steady growth in R&D expenditures can be attributed to
the efforts of our faculty and students, and reflects the
University's
growing commitment to research and
scholarship," said Jerzy Sawicki, Ph.D., vice president for
research at CSU. "Strong productivity has also allowed us to
increase our share of competitive dollars while the trend in
research expenditures across the nation is flat."
Among all public and private universities in Ohio, the NSF
currently ranks CSU at No. 7 in R&D expenditures, ahead of
the likes of Ohio University, Wright State University, Miami
University, Kent State University and Bowling Green
University.
News from the Technology
Transfer Office
New Faculty Member Secures External Funding
As covered in the December issue of the Office of Research
Newsletter, CSU's new faculty are actively pursuing external funding.
One of these new faculty members, Ungtae Kim, assistant professor
in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, recently
secured funding from the Strategic Environmental Research
Development Program (SERDP) managed by U.S. Department of
Defense (DoD).
DoD supports environmental research programs to improve the DoD's
environmental performance, reduce costs, and enhance and sustain
Dr. Ungtae Kim
mission capabilities. Thousands of military sites have been identified
as contaminated with hazardous compounds. Research by Dr. Kim
and his colleagues is aimed at developing and testing a methodology to periodically assess and
optimize remediation systems, and to monitor the DoD's contaminated sites.
Over $390,000 Funds Engineering Research
Vice President for Research, and D.E. Bently and A. Muszynska
Endowed Chair in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Jerzy
Sawicki, has received over $390,000 in research funding from the
University Space Research Association (USRA).
This research is focused on application of various nondestructive
evaluation (NDE) techniques on advanced materials and components
such as polymer and ceramic composites as well as advanced
metallic materials to identify manufacturing related flaws as well as
damage and degradation due to in-service conditions. Results of this
Dr. Jerzy Sawicki
work can then be used to improve material processing techniques
and improve material models. Another aspect of this research is
related to structural health monitoring techniques to predict existing anomalies and faults in
turbine engine hot section rotating components.
Call for Participation - Workshop on the
Logistics of Proposal Development
The Office of Research offered a new workshop, Logistics of Proposal Development, during the
Fall 2014 semester, which was open to all tenured and tenure-track faculty interested in
developing proposals for external research funding. This workshop will be offered again this
semester, on Friday, April 10 from 1:00-4:00pm in PH 104.
For more information, including how to register by the deadline of 5:00pm on March 25, 2015,
please read the complete Call for Participation.
CSU Scholar News
A groundbreaking study led by Dr. Valentin Börner, associate professor in
the Department of Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences
(BGES), reveals how cells turn chromosome breaks from challenge to
opportunity. Chromosomes store all our genetic information. The danger
of losing genetic material makes chromosome breaks particularly
hazardous. Causes for chromosome breaks include radiation and toxins.
Genome instability is also observed in many solid tumors, as well as at
the origin of birth defects and miscarriages. Not surprisingly, cells have
powerful ways for repairing chromosome breaks. This response is
Dr. Valentin Börner orchestrated by master regulators called checkpoints. Checkpoints
function in two ways: First, they stop cell divisions to prevent inheritance
of fragmented chromosomes. Second, they activate enzymes that can repair chromosome
breaks. However, chromosome breaks are not always bad. Take meiosis, the special cell
division that halves the diploid chromosome set when eggs or sperm are formed. As meiosis
gets started, cells gradually inflict an ever larger number of breaks on their chromosomes. These
self-inflicted breaks are used to link maternal and paternal chromosomes and ensure their
distribution in the meiosis cell division.
A team of scientists at Cleveland State University's Center for Gene Regulation in Health and
Disease (GRHD) and the Department of BGES has discovered a new, ultrasensitive checkpoint
system that controls chromosome break repair, specifically, when there are only a few breaks
per cell. Previously, it was assumed that two checkpoints called ATM and ATR perform
overlapping functions during meiosis. The researchers now report, in a study published in the
journal Molecular Cell (appeared online on Feb 5th), that only ATM activates chromosome
break repair when break levels are low. Molecular Cell is a companion to Cell, the leading
journal of biology and the highest-impact journal in the world.
"Meiosis really poses a unique challenge to cells," says Dr. Valentin Börner. "They have to
decide: Are these the bad kind of breaks that threaten the genome, or are they the good ones
that help in chromosome segregation? This led us to a simple question: When do cells stop
treating self-inflicted breaks as damage instead using them for chromosome segregation?"
The answer surprised the scientists: The more breaks there are, the better cells get in using
them. "It's ironic: Only when you inflict lots of breaks on your genome they start becoming useful
for chromosome segregation," says Dr. Börner. The fact that cells monitor break numbers has
wide implications. Outside the germ line, ATM and ATR are important guardians against cancer.
Patients carrying mutated copies of the ATM gene are highly radiation sensitive and have a 100- fold increased cancer risk. Dose-dependent responses to chromosome breaks may be shared
between meiosis and somatic cells, potentially providing novel insights into how cells battle
harmful genome damage. This study may have wide implications for radiation therapy and
cancer treatment.
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Please share with us important news or updates on your research, scholarly, or creative
activities. Updates may be related to a paper that has been accepted for publication in a highimpact journal, a book you've just published, your work that will be exhibited at a prominent
institution, or other updates you wish to share with our office. Send details to j.yard@csuohio.edu
and c.mclennan@csuohio.edu.
Red5 Pharmaceuticals Receives Another $60,000
Congratulations to Red5 Pharmaceuticals for receiving $60,000 in funding from the Ohio Third
Frontier Foundation. As announced in the June issue of this newsletter, Red5 was previously
awarded $25,000 in funding from GLIDE. Both awards are based on work from a Faculty
Innovation Fund award to CSU Professor Anthony Berdis, chief scientific officer and co-founder
of Red5 Pharmaceuticals, LLC, and a member of CSU's Center for Gene Regulation in Health
and Disease (GRHD).
New Funding Opportunity - MIRP
Up to $75,000 for Successful Multidisciplinary Teams of Eligible Faculty
The Office of Research is pleased to announce the Multi-College Interdisciplinary Research
Program (MIRP), which provides funding for broad and collaborative research activities that are
interdisciplinary and involve faculty from multiple colleges across CSU. A comprehensive list of
guidelines for MIRP are available here.
Each application must designate a team that includes one Principal Investigator (PI) and at least
two co-Principal Investigators. At least three colleges must be represented between the
members of the proposing team and the involvement of each member including the PI and CoPIs should be specifically described.
Applicants should contact Dr. Conor Mc Lennan in the Office of Research at
c.mclennan@csuohio.edu or via phone 216-687-5171, prior to submitting a proposal, to receive
confirmation that the proposed research is consistent with the goals of the program.
There is no specific due date for proposals. Instead, proposals will be accepted on a rolling
basis, and the Office of Research will coordinate the continuous review of all submitted
proposals until September 30, 2015, or upon commitment of all available funds, whichever
occurs first.
Deadlines Approaching for FRD, FSI, and DRA Applications
Don’t forget to submit your Faculty Research and Development (FRD) and Faculty Scholarship
Initiative (FSI) proposals -- and to encourage your doctoral students to submit a Dissertation
Research Award (DRA) proposal. FRD proposals are due to Deans by March 6, 2015; FSI
proposals are due to the Office of Research by March 6, 2015; and DRA proposals are due to
Doctoral Program Directors by March 6, 2015.
Undergraduate Summer Research Award Proposals Under Review
Fifty-eight proposals were received from six colleges with requests totaling $450,397. Proposals
are currently under review, and award decisions are expected by March 13, 2015. The Office of
Research would like to thank all of the faculty members who are currently working hard to
provide thoughtful, quality, and timely reviews.
Meet CSU's New Research Faculty
Dr. Christopher Boyd, assistant professor in the Department of
Chemistry, joined CSU in fall 2014. Dr. Boyd's research is inspired by
the tremendous importance, in synthetic chemistry, biochemistry, and
medicine, of the molecule nitric oxide (NO). NO is a toxic gas in large
quantities, but it is essential to living things in low concentrations, as
it serves as a signaling molecule.
Much of the vital biochemistry of NO is due to its ability to bind - or
coordinate - to transition metal atoms or ions present in proteins. The
binding of NO to synthetic transition metal compounds to form
products known as nitrosyl complexes has also been widely explored
by inorganic chemists. In contrast, comparatively little work has been
done on the coordination chemistry of nitroso compounds, organic
Dr. Christopher Boyd
molecules containing NO as one part of a larger molecule. Dr. Boyd's
research focuses on the exploration of the reactivity of nitroso
compounds with transition metals, and the application of this fundamental chemistry to practical
problems.
Featured Researcher Video Series - Jeff Karem
Dr. Jeff Karems's research is the focus of
the latest installment of the Featured
Researcher Video series. Dr. Karem is a
Professor of English at Cleveland State
University. His research focuses on the
contributions of immigrant writers to
American literature. We encourage you to
learn about Dr. Karem's work, and to take a
look at our previous Featured Researcher
Videos.
NIH News - New Biographical Sketch Format
NIH will require a new biosketch format for applications submitted for due dates on or after May
25, 2015. Researchers can read about this new format in a recent article in Nature, and in this
NIH announcement.
Learn About the Web of Science-Google Scholar Collaboration
As many researchers know, the Web of Science is based on published, peer-reviewed content,
and Google Scholar incorporates a larger set of citations, including from preprints and theses.
Thomson Reuters Web of Science and Google Scholar began a collaboration, which was rolled
out approximately one year ago. Researchers are encouraged to read more here, and to
consider registering for an upcoming one-hour webinar on March 4, 2015 aimed at informing
researchers how to get the most out of this collaboration.
News from the Technology Transfer Office
EVENT: Biomaterials Innovation: Selections and Considerations for Successful Product
Development. Learn about the latest trends and innovations in biomaterials, while gaining
insight from experts on how to select the proper raw material and the challenges and
considerations to be aware of at the start of product development. Date: Tuesday, February 24,
2015 from 8:00am - 11:00am. Location: Corporate College East, 4400 Richmond Road, Room
203, Warrensville Heights, OH 44128. Click here to register for this event.
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