Proposals for Non-Invasive Biosensing and Point-of-Care Sensors Win UC Grants

The Office of Research has announced the winners of the inaugural Strategic Collaborative Faculty Grant Program, initiated by the Office of the Assistant Vice President of Research, Strategic Implementation.

This program provides financial support ($250,000 over 18 months) for interdisciplinary research teams led by University of Cincinnati tenure-track and research faculty. The initial funding announcement focused on interdisciplinary research that overlapped with the following areas: environment (exposure), health and sensing. The funding is meant as a springboard for preparation and growth of research teams to be able to successfully respond to large, multimillion dollar interdisciplinary research funding opportunities.

Following a review of 37 letters of intent and 17 preproposals, two proposals were recommended by a review panel comprised of Grace LeMasters, Jack Kues, Jack Rubinstein, Paul Bishop and Phil Taylor. Winners of the two $125,000 awards are:

1. Point-of-Care Sensors for Biomarkers of Environmental and Personal Exposure Assessment. Research Team: Ian Papautsky, professor of electrical engineering (College of Engineering and Applied Science); Vesselin Shanov, professor of chemical engineering (CEAS); Dionysios Dionysiou, professor of environmental engineering (CEAS); William Heineman, professor of chemistry (McMicken College of Arts & Sciences); Soryong Chae, assistant professor of environmental engineering (CEAS); Laura Sagle, assistant professor of chemistry (A&S); Noe Alvarez, research professor of chemical engineering (CEAS); and Erin Haynes, associate professor of environmental health (College of Medicine).
2. Non-Invasive Biosensing through Skin: Integrated Reverse Iontophoresis Extraction and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy Detection. Research Team: Leyla Esfandiari, assistant professor of electrical engineering and biomedical engineering (CEAS); Yoonjee Park, assistant professor of chemical engineering and electrical engineering (CEAS); Gerald Kasting, professor of pharmaceutics and cosmetic science (James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy); Steven Boyce, professor of surgery (COM); and Jason Heikenfeld, professor of electrical engineering (CEAS).

For more information, go to the Office of Research website.