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Grant to aid in learning to slow aging process

KU researchers are hoping to better understand what happens in the muscles and brain during the aging process. The goal of the research is to discover how to slow or even reverse the aging process.

The National Institutes of Health has given KU $7.5 million for a five-year period. This is the second NIH extension of the project titled "Role of Reactive Oxygen Species in Aging."

Oxidation of tissue cells occurs naturally as people age. KU researchers are studying how proteins found in cells become oxidized and how the oxidation affects the proteins.

Elias Michaelis, University Distinguished Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology and director of KU's Higuchi Biosciences Center, said the study could isolate a mechanism that causes oxidation of proteins in tissues.

The research could lead to a treatment for aging based on reducing the rate of oxidation in muscles and the brain.

The renewal project includes three subprojects. One is led by Michaelis. The others are led by Christian Schšneich, professor and chair of pharmaceutical chemistry, and Mary Michaelis, professor of pharmacology and toxicology. Their work is supported by two scientific core groups. One is led by Todd Williams, director of KU's Mass Spectrometry Laboratory. The other is led by Mary Michaelis in collaboration with Dianne Durham, professor of otolaryngology at the KU Medical Center.

RESEARCH MATTERS:

Greenhouse gases aren't the only contributors to climate change. Research by Johannes Feddema, professor of geography, shows covering land with crops, concrete and suburban sprawl has an effect on the climate as well. "As humans change a landscape... it will change the reflectivity of the surface and that changes the amount of energy that is absorbed, and then ultimately energy that's available to evaporate water, to conduct into the ground, to be used for photosynthesis" Feddema said. For more, or to listen to the original broadcast, visit www.researchmatters.ku.edu.