Key highlights:
- Aston University and the Eshelman Institute for Innovation (EII) will look at developing treatments for traumatic brain injury.
- Dr Kevin Frankowski from the Eshelman School of Pharmacy and Professor Roslyn Bill from Aston University are the co-principal investigators.
- The US$400,000 grant will advance research in non-surgical approaches.
As part of a new collaboration, the Eshelman Institute for Innovation (EII), within the UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, will work with Aston University on a three-year project focused on preventing damage caused by swelling of the central nervous system (CNS).
EII issued a US$400,000 grant to co-principal investigators, Dr Kevin Frankowski, assistant professor for the Center for Integrative Chemical Biology and Drug Discovery at the Eshelman School of Pharmacy, and Professor Roslyn Bill, professor of biotechnology at Aston University, to develop treatments for CNS swelling.
The EII was established in 2014 with a $100 million commitment from Dr Fred Eshelman, and provides translational grant funding to Carolina faculty for therapeutic research focused on oncology, infectious disease, and neuroscience (including rare diseases); however, the EII welcomes ideas for devices and diagnostics, and other therapeutic areas and services. Through their grant mechanism, the EII encourages research proposals that include a broad spectrum of scientific engagement through meaningful collaborations across a variety of diverse disciplines, departments, schools, and institutions.
Dr John Bamforth, executive director of the EII and a former graduate of Aston University, said: “We are extremely excited to see this collaboration begin. EII embraces bringing together the brightest and best scientists to solve major patient needs. Personally, it is also a delight to see the number one school of pharmacy in the US partner with Aston.”
Frankowksi said: “The validation of non-surgical approaches to treat the CNS swelling that may occur following a stroke or traumatic brain or spine injuries remains a critical unmet medical challenge. Safe and effective treatment options are urgently needed for the millions of patients worldwide who suffer from these injuries every year. I am excited to partner with Roslyn Bill and her team to develop first-in-class small molecule candidates as potential therapeutic agents to treat the underlying cause of CNS swelling post stroke or accident.”
Both Frankowski and Bill bring unique and necessary knowledge to the table for this project. The opportunity to work together, research and develop new therapeutic agents is only possible because of EII.
“It gives me unparalleled access to the medicinal chemistry expertise at EII and I’ll be working with a world expert in their neuropharmacology area, Kevin Frankowski. That will allow us to combine the discovery that I’ve made on the biological mechanism behind traumatic brain injury and Kevin’s deep knowledge of the chemistry. I can’t think of a better partner for that. This work will get us closer to a medicine for people who’ve had a traumatic injury to the brain or spinal cord. There’s currently nothing available so the potential is huge,” said Bill.