University of Nebraska researchers will look for ways that existing treatments could be repurposed to mitigate exposures to chemical or biological weapons war fighters may encounter on the battlefield.
The $10.3 million contract between the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency and the NU system's National Strategic Research Institute will engage researchers at UNL and UNMC over the next four years to develop responses to various threats.
The order from the Department of Defense is part of the $92 million contract renewal it signed with the National Strategic Research Institute earlier this year.
Key to the project will be the Nebraska Drug Development Pipeline, which allows researchers across the university system to study molecules that can be used for prevention and treatment.
* Dr. Daniel Monaghan, a professor of pharmacology and experimental neuroscience at UNMC, studies the biochemical and physiological effects of novel drugs on the nervous system.
* Dr. Daushik Patel, a UNMC professor of cellular and integrative physiology, will lead a team to study the effects of chemical agents on the cardiovascular and renal systems.
* Dr. Daryl Murry, a professor in pharmaceutical sciences, will lend expertise in the actions of drugs within living organisms, which is necessary to obtaining regulatory approvals for human use.
* And UNL Professor Rick Bevins, who also serves as NU's interim associate vice chancellor for research, will study how the drugs affect cognition and behavior.
"I'm particularly excited to have the opportunity to work across the university system in a new way," Bevins said in an email. "We have the technology, facilities and people to continue to be a trusted partner of the Department of Defense, and this is a prime example."
Robert Hinson, the National Strategic Research Institute's executive director, said the contract will continue the work the center has done in detecting substances such as anthrax, responding to infectious disease outbreaks and treating acute radiation exposure as part of its overall mission to combat weapons of mass destruction.
"Within our own university and across the national security landscape, we continue to assemble highly skilled teams that deliver products to the DOD and NSRI's own mission — keeping our war fighters safe," Hinson said.