The Nebraska INBRE Program's scientific themes focus on understanding the structure and function of viruses, and how cells communicate.
The program's scientific focus is based on the strengths and expertise of campus faculty in the areas of cancer biology, cell signaling, and infectious disease. Collaborative arrangements between undergraduate faculty and research mentors are integral to the development of the focus areas and help lead to a greater understanding of the structure and function of viruses and how cells communicate.
Together, faculty and mentors engage, inspire and educate students to pursue scientific careers in Nebraska.
Our Themes
Cancer Biology
Cell Signaling
Infectious Disease
Cancer is not limited by gender, age or ethnicity and has no physical barriers within the body. Cancer can be defined as a disease in which a group of abnormal cells grows uncontrollably by disregarding the normal rules of cell division.
Normal cells are constantly subject to signals that dictate whether the cell should divide, differentiate into another cell, or die. Cancer cells develop a degree of autonomy from these signals, resulting in uncontrolled growth and proliferation. If this proliferation is allowed to continue and spread, the result can be fatal. In fact, a majority of cancer-related deaths are due to tumor spreading, a process called metastasis.
Although many advances in cancer treatment have been made in recent decades, numerous challenges remain before the goal of providing the best possible outcome for all patients diagnosed with cancer can be achieved.
Research on the treatment of cancer is fundamental to improving outcomes for patients affected by the disease. These efforts include the development of more effective and less toxic treatments, such as targeted therapies, immunotherapies and cancer vaccines, as well as the improvement of therapies that have existed for decades, such as chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery.
For more about this research focus, email Kate Hyde, PhD, assistant professor in the UNMC Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, or call 402-559-4467. Dr. Hyde's faculty bio
The area of cell signaling has emerged as a major field of scientific focus because of its central role in all aspects of normal cell function, as well as in diseases and the effects of toxins and other pathogens in humans, animals, plants and lower organisms.
There are large numbers of proteins whose function is to mediate various aspects of cell signaling, including hundreds of cell surface receptors and an even wider array of transducer proteins and effector enzymes that generate second messengers or assemble multi-protein signaling complexes. These intermediate signaling molecules in turn regulate kinases and phosphatases, ion channels, transcription factors, and many other intracellular and cell surface targets.
Together these pathways convert receptor activation into cellular responses, such as changes in gene expression, growth and differentiation, cell migration or contraction, secretion, and changes in membrane ion gradients and electrical properties. It is now recognized that these pathways are not linear but comprise a network of interconnected lines of communication that integrate inputs from a variety of extracellular and intracellular sources into an appropriate coordinated response. Alternatively, inappropriate activity of these receptors or signaling mediators can contribute to cell or organismal pathology or death. Finally, it is well-established that these receptors and signaling pathway molecules can be highly effective targets for drugs to prevent or treat diseases in humans and animals as well as for insecticides, herbicides, and other non-medical bioactive agents.
Viruses are the simplest of biological systems, consisting only of protein and nucleic acid and incapable of reproducing themselves without a host. Yet, viruses have made a huge impact on 20th century life, from their role as infectious agents in devastating diseases like smallpox and AIDS to their use as one of the key tools in the quest to decipher the workings of the gene.
Virology research in Nebraska ranges across disciplines and into the frontiers of research, exploring the basic nature of viruses and their potential applications for diagnosis and control of diseases in plants, animals and humans
