By Maureen McArthur
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"The use of these facilities should have
a significant impact on molecular biology programs at the UK Lexington campus, the UK
Chandler Medical Center, and the UK research centers and institutes," said Fitzgerald
Bramwell, vice president, research and graduate studies at UK, who attended the signing
today.
To learn more about the Argonne National Laboratory, check out its Web site.
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LEXINGTON, KY (March 12, 1999) -- A consortium
of southeastern universities that includes the University of Kentucky signed an agreement
today with the Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory in Chicago.
This agreement will allow members of the Southeast Regional Collaborative Access Team
(SER-CAT) to use powerful X-rays generated by the APS to determine structures of
molecules. "The use of these facilities should have a significant impact on
molecular biology programs at the UK Lexington campus, the UK Chandler Medical Center, and
the UK research centers and institutes," said Fitzgerald Bramwell, vice president,
research and graduate studies at UK, who attended the signing today.
B.C. Wang, Ph.D., Ramsey-Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar of X-Ray
Crystallography at the University of Georgia, coordinated the consortium and now serves as
director of the SER-CAT board. David Rodgers, Ph.D., assistant professor, Department of
Biochemistry, UK College of Medicine, is UK’s representative on the board.
UK will contribute $500,000 toward the construction of a "beamline," an
access point through which the X-rays can be directed for research.
"The APS is one of the most powerful X-ray facilities in the world," Rodgers
said. "Using the APS, researchers can determine molecular structure with great
accuracy and with very small amounts of material in crystalline form."
Many of the SER-CAT investigators view the ability to use very small crystals as the
major reason for building beamlines at Argonne National Laboratory.
Deciphering the structure of a molecule has been immensely important in biological and
materials science research, leading to basic information on the structure of DNA,
development of improved engineering materials, and design of new medicines.
Research at UK that will benefit from use of the beamlines includes:
- Examining the structure and function of plant proteins that may have agricultural or
medicinal applications
- Determining the structure of neurolysin, an important enzyme found in the central
nervous system, that may lead to new therapies for pain relief and schizophrenia
- Investigating the structure of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase, a protein that helps repair
damage to DNA, that may provide novel chemotherapy drugs
The cost of a single beamline is about $7 million. SER-CAT has raised about $13 million
to $15 million and has agreed to support two beamlines.
Design and construction of the first beamline should be completed in three years.
"This agreement will provide UK scientists and students cutting-edge technology
that has become essential for research in structural molecular biology and materials
science," said Del Collins, Ph.D., vice chancellor for research and graduate studies
for the UK Chandler Medical Center. "It is another important step toward our goal to
enhance the research resources for our faculty and students." |
