LOUISIANA RESEARCH


	Developments in the Louisiana State University System Scientists work to improve Louisiana's water quality - LSU AgCenter LSU AgCenter scientists have set up a series of research projects across the state to test the quality of water that runs off agricultural fields and into local streams and bayous. This research is important for the future of Louisiana's status as a recreational destination and a "sportsman's paradise"-particularly since the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has classified more than 70 percent of Louisiana's freshwater bodies as impaired and needing improvement. This research also affects the quality of the water that ends up in the Gulf of Mexico, which the Louisiana fishery industry depends on for survival. Along with testing the water, the scientists are teaching Louisiana farmers to adopt more environmentally friendly farming practices so there is less chance for sediment and nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, to pollute the waterways. These practices include less flooding of rice paddies, for example, since rice is the crop that uses the most water. Another unique plan is to build a wetland between agricultural fields and a freshwater body. Wetlands are a natural way to filter out polluting materials in runoff. An experiment to test this technique began earlier this year at the LSU AgCenter's cotton research farm in Bossier City. Urban studies advanced - University of New Orleans The Journal of Urban History devoted a March 2003 special issue to the influential "second ghetto" thesis of the University of New Orleans' Arnold R. Hirsch, Ethel and Herman L. Midlo Professor for New Orleans Studies and University Research Professor of Urban History. Hirsch laid out the thesis in his 1983 book Making the Second Ghetto: Race and Housing in Chicago, 1940-1960, which details how Chicago dealt with its rapidly growing black population in the post-World War II years by reinforcing segregation and perpetuating the existence of the city's ghettos. The Journal of Urban History, which had never before singled out an individual work for such attention, recruited six national scholars to examine the impact of Hirsch's work on the study of urban residential segregation, public policy and the formation of racial identity. "Making the Second Ghetto," one scholar wrote, was "a book before its time." Hirsch's current research interests include issues related to race and housing, urban politics, and the civil rights era. A breath of relief - Pennington Biomedical Research Center People with diabetes living in Louisiana now have a place to receive insulin without those daily needle sticks: the Pennington Biomedical Research Center. Dr. William Cefalu, a physician and diabetic specialist, is ramping up clinical trials of the drug Exubera, a fast-acting insulin in the form of a fine, dry powder. It's the first inhaled insulin clinical trial in the state. Cefalu's hope is to prove inhalation is a viable option for taking insulin, so patients can improve their long-term control of diabetes needle free. Currently, diabetics who require insulin to control their blood sugar levels are forced to receive it through injections. Patients taking Exubera will use a handheld inhaler-a rather enlarged version of those used by asthma patients-to breathe the drug in through the mouth and into the lungs. The trial will determine if diabetics can effectively control their blood sugar using this safer, faster, and much more convenient insulin-delivery method. LSU technology center partners with Einstein Institute in Berlin - Louisiana State University The LSU Center for Computation and Technology (CCT), formerly known as LSU CAPITAL, recently partnered with the Albert Einstein Institute (AEI) in Berlin, Germany, to create a high bandwidth connection between the two institutions, allowing scientists at both to use each other's computational resources. The two institutions' common research in numerical relativity has led to a number of joint projects, utilizing the great computational resources at both sites. This high performance computing grid aids in the solving of Einstein's equations as well as other research in gravitational physics. "Intel is proud to work with thought leaders such as LSU and the Albert Einstein Institute to provide world-class high-performance computing solutions," said Jason Waxman, director, HPC Platforms Marketing, Intel Corporation. "The connections of the LSU and AEI HPC clusters into a grid, highlights another example of the growing trend toward the teaming of computational resources towards faster results and better scientific discovery." The LSU CCT was set up to generate a culture of learning, innovation and entrepreneurship at LSU. The driving force behind the center is the use of information technology to help achieve the economic development goals of the Louisiana legislature's Information Technology Initiative, and facilitate movement towards National Flagship status for LSU. Ed Seidel, LSU's CCT director, worked as head of the numerical group at the AEI, the world's leading center for gravitational physics, and continues to hold a part-time appointment there. New finds in anti-inflammatories - LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans Nicolas Bazan and his team at the LSU Neuroscience Center of Excellence, an arm of the School of Medicine at the LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans are on the cutting-edge of trends in medicine with new discoveries. In November, they received patents for two potential anti-inflammatory medicines. Inflammation is the new hot topic in health care, according to the Feb. 23 cover story of Time magazine. "Chronic inflammation may be the engine that drives many of the most feared illnesses of middle and old age. This concept is so intriguing because it suggests a new and possibly much simpler way of warding off disease. Instead of different treatments for, say, heart disease, Alzheimer's and colon cancer, there might be a single, inflammation-reducing remedy that would prevent all three," wrote Christine Gorman and Alice Park in their Time article, "The Fires Within." Bazan and Dr. Julio Alvarez Builla of the Universidad de Alcala in Spain were granted the patents for their collaborative discovery of two synthetic drugs, which they named LAU-0901 and 5 Lipoxygenase Inhibitor. The first works through blockade of neuroinflammation, the second as a more general inhibitor of the inflammatory response. Medicines based on the compounds would act as precisely guided laser beams, attacking specific areas of inflammation in the body, Bazan said. The next step is to comply with FDA guidelines by conducting preclinical and human clinical trials. These drugs could be ready for use in as little as three to four years. Synthesis project funded - Louisiana State University Shreveport A $50,853 grant from the U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services (USDHHS) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) is being awarded to Dr. Brian Salvatore and Dr. Elahe Mahdavian through the LBRN Summer Faculty Research Program for their research project entitled "Synthesis and Study of Novel Template Based Ion Channels." This research will be carried out in collaboration with the Dept. of Chemistry at LSU Baton Rouge. Applications for the work include the development of new types of chemical biosensors which could be used for detection of particular agents within the body or the environment. This type of research has potential impact for future biomedical, environmental and pharmaceutical applications and is of interest to several federal agencies, such as NIH, EPA and the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security.