Principal Deputy Director of NIH meets with HU researchers

Principal Deputy Director of NIH meets with HU researchers

Principal Deputy Director of the National Institutes of Health Dr. Lawrence A. Tabak met with 20 Hampton University researchers on March 23. Tabak also toured the research facilities on campus and visited the Hampton University Proton Therapy Institute (HUPTI).

“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Tabak our campus and present to him some of the significant research projects underway at Hampton University,” said HU President Dr. William R. Harvey. “We look forward to partnering with the National Institutes of Health on more of our science-driven projects.”

Tabak heard presentations from researchers and discussed opportunities and partnerships that are available at the National Institutes of Health. Several researchers including, Dr. Meena Katdare, scientific director of the Hampton University Skin of Color Institute (HUSCI), told Tabak about the ongoing research programs at HU. Currently, there is a scarcity of research that specifically addresses the structural and functional differences as well as the disparities in disease incidence and prevalence amongst individuals from various ethnic/racial groups. It is this lack of hard research data that the HUSCRI is addressing.

Tabak asked the researchers pointed questions about their research projects and discussed different funding avenues at NIH. He also commended the HU researchers for their quantitative research efforts.

Dr. Cynthia Keppel, scientific and technical director of HUPTI, spoke to Tabak about the basic and clinical cancer research being conducted at the Institute. HUPTI will host sustained forefront scientific initiatives in cancer research at many levels – including comparative trails in prostate cancer, pioneering initiatives in breast cancer, radiation biology integration, health disparities research, instrumentation and modeling and simulation. Tabak ended his Hampton University visit with a tour of HUPTI, the largest free-standing proton therapy institute in the world.

“With continued support from the NIH, Hampton University researchers will continue to make great strides in conducting scientific research and developing technologies that address major global heath issues,” Harvey said.

HU Named a Top Research Institution

Hampton University students conduct research in the genomics lab and a chemistry lab.

HU Named a Top Research Institution

Hampton University has been named a top research institution in the 2010 Washington Monthly College Guide. HU is listed in the top 10 ranking in the Research Category for master’s universities. Hampton University is also listed No. 32 in the Top 50 Master’s Universities category out of more than 500 such institutions surveyed.

“Hampton University’s faculty and students are conducting cutting-edge research that addresses major health issues and global climate change,” said HU President Dr. William R. Harvey. “The newly opened Hampton University Proton Institute, the largest of its kind in the world, demonstrates our dedication to research and treatment that will ease human suffering and save lives.”

The Hampton University Proton Therapy Institute (HUPTI) held its grand opening on Oct. 21, 2010. Along with state-of-the-art proton therapy treatment, cancer research will also be conducted at the $225 million innovative biomedical cancer facility. HUPTI in conjunction with Eastern Virginia Medical School and the Midwest Proton Radiotherapy Institute is developing BioEclipse, the first biologically optimized treatment-planning system for proton therapy cancer treatment.

Hampton University has led all Virginia top-tiered research universities in winning competitive federal research contracts. Hampton University has received over $140 million in climate research funding from NASA for the Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) satellite mission. AIM is the first satellite dedicated to the study of noctilucent (NLC) or "night-shining" clouds. Hampton University is the first Historically Black College and University to have total mission responsibility for a NASA satellite mission.

Washington Monthly bases its rankings on “how well individual colleges and universities were meeting their public obligations in the areas of social mobility, research, and service.” The research score for master’s universities is based on the total amount of an institutions research spending and the number of undergraduate alumni who have gone on to receive a Ph.D. in any subject, relative to the size of the institution.