Richard T. Mathias
Professor

Research in biophysics seeks physical insights into how cells and tissues function, with the ultimate goal to better the health of mankind. In our lab, research is directed toward understanding fundamental properties of two different organs, and how those properties relate to specific diseases: 1) homeostasis in the normal lens and how its compromise leads to formation of cataracts in the elderly; 2) regulation of calcium and contraction in the heart and how their compromise leads to congestive heart failure. Our work suggests both are related to membrane transport proteins, membrane voltage and ionic current flow from cell to cell. My early work was on the voltage distribution and 3-dimensional current spread in multi-cellular tissues. Maxwell's classical laws relating charge and voltage provide part of the picture, but ions move about by diffusion and convection as well as conduction, so the laws of thermodynamics, describing the coupling of these driving forces to ion fluxes, also apply. The geometry of the cells, the interconnection between cells and the specific membrane transport proteins in local groups of cells are important components of organ function. Both the heart and lens have spatially segregated membrane transport proteins, which interact through the interconnection of cells via gap junctions. In the last 10 years, we have focused on the roles of specific membrane proteins that generate, regulate and direct fluxes of ions, water and neutral solutes in these two organs.

Ph.D. - University of California, Los Angeles, 1975

Email: rmathias@notes.cc.sunysb.edu
URL: http://newphy.pnb.sunysb.edu/faculty/mathias/mathias.htm

W. Richard McCombie
Associate Professor

The long-range goal of our lab is to correlate structure and function in complex genomes. Our approach includes two major components: (1) the application of high-throughput DNA sequence analysis; and (2) the improvement of technologies, strategies, and software for DNA sequence analysis. Our current work focuses on participating in international collaborative efforts to analyze DNA sequences of the mouse and rice genomes and the genome of a model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana. Arabidopsis is a small flowering plant that has become an important model organism for plant molecular biology. It has a genome of about 100 million base pairs. This compact size coupled with the availability of many molecular biology tools for studying gene function in this organism have made it the primary target of genome sequencing in plants. Through the efforts of scientists in many countries including those in our lab, the Arabidopsis genome will be fully sequenced by the end of the year 2000. We have also begun an effort to sequence regions of rice chromosome 10 as well as specific areas of the human genome that are important in cancer development. We are participating in generating a rough draft of the mouse genome sequencing biologically important regions of this important model organism. We are collaborating with our colleagues at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Robert Martienssen, Michael Zhang, and Lincoln Stein, to analyze DNA sequences from Arabidopsis and humans, using computational and experimental tools. This combined approach to the systematic study of eukaryotic genomes will create a new infrastructure of knowledge for biological research in the next century.

Ph.D. - University of Michigan, 1982

Phone: (516) 367-8884
Email: mccombie@cshl.org
URL: http://clio1.cshl.org/gradschool/mccombie_.html
 

Lisa Miller
Associate Biophysical Chemist

Lisa Miller's research focuses on the study of the chemical makeup of tissue in disease using high-resolution infrared and x-ray imaging at Brookhaven's National Synchrotron Light Source. Her work has two primary research areas: (1) examination of the chemical composition of bone tissue in diseases such as osteoarthritis and osteoporosis, and (2) correlation of metal ion content and protein structure in brain tissue in protein-folding diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and scrapie. In bone disease, there is often an imbalance between the processes of bone production and resorption, which results in an increase (as in osteoarthritis) or decrease (as in osteoporosis) in bone density. However, it is unclear whether the composition of bone is affected. Thus, infrared imaging and micro-spectroscopy are used to determine parameters such as protein and mineral content, structure, and environment. With this information, a chemical picture of how bone composition affects the mechanical and structural properties of bone can be developed. In many protein-folding diseases, proteins that normally occur in the brain are found to misfold and aggregate, causing neurological damage. These protein aggregates are often associated with high metal content in the brain. For example, high concentrations of zinc have been associated with amyloid plaques in Alzheimer's disease. Using synchrotron x-ray and infrared imaging, the metal ions and protein aggregates can be imaged and correlated. These findings will help to determine how the accumulation of metal ions in the brain is associated with protein misfolding.

Ph.D. - Albert Einstein College of Medicine, 1995

Phone: (631) 344-2091
Fax: (631) 344-3238
Email: lmiller@bnl.gov
   

Michiko Miura
Assisant Professor

We are interested in developing new boron-carriers for BNCT. Here at BNL and at MIT, p-boronophenylalanine (BPA) is used clinically for the post-surgical treatment of malignant brain tumors. However, a compound with higher tumor:brain and tumor:blood boron concentration ratios could significantly improve efficacy wither used with PBA or used alone. Various compounds, carboranyl porphyrins in particular, are synthesized and are then tested in tumor-bearing rodents to assess critical biological properties: biodistribution, toxicity, and therapeutic efficacy. A couple of lead porphyrins have shown significant improvements in biodistribution with low toxicity and efficacy by tumor control has also been demonstrated in vivo. In addition, the new compounds can be imaged by PET, SPECT or MRI. Research is continuing in drug delivery methods, testing in different animal tumor models, and in the syntheses of new compounds.

Ph.D. - University of California, Davis, 1984

Phone: (631) 344-3618
Email: miura@bnl.gov
 

Leon C. Moore
Professor

Research Interests: Renal physiology

Ph.D. - University of Southern California, 1976

E-mail: lmoore@notes.cc.sunysb.edu

Email: lmoore@notes.cc.sunysb.edu

Klaus Mueller
Associate Professor

My research interests are computer graphics, visualization, medical imaging, medical diagnosis systems, image-based rendering, and distributed large-scale virtual environments. In computer graphics, I'm particularly interested in developing new algorithms for high-quality volume and scientific visualization, especially for real-time applications, such as surgical simulation and computational steering. Image-based rendering has become a recent focus in this line of work, where I seek to use these powerful concepts and extend them to accelerate general volume rendering. Point-based representations are a related topic in that respect. In medical imaging, I have been focusing primarily on cone-beam tomography. My dissertation investigated the use of algebraic methods for high-quality cone-beam CT, in particular for scenarios in which the number of available projections is sparse, such as cardiac imaging and intra-operative CT. This research also yielded a technique that employs standard texture mapping hardware for rapid 3D reconstruction. In the field of medical diagnostics systems, I have been striving to design new and more efficient paradigms for the presentation of large medical image data sets to the physician. The goal is to develop display paradigms that focus the physician's attention to the relevant portions of the image data and to provide efficient tools for image processing, enhancement, management, annotation, blackboarding, and communication.

Ph.D. - The Ohio State University, 1998

Phone: (631) 632-1524
Email: muellerk@acm.org
URL: http://www.cs.sunysb.edu/~mueller
 

Scott Powers
Associate Professor

Cancer gene discovery; cancer diagnostics and therapeutics; cancer biology
The goals of our research are (1) to use whole-genome technologies to identify candidate cancer genes and to evaluate their functional role in cell transformation and tumor biology, and (2) to use whole-genome technologies to guide development of novel cancer diagnostics and therapeutics. Our efforts to date have focused on using DNA copy number analysis (ROMA) to pinpoint novel amplified oncogenes. One novel amplified oncogene we discovered, the PPM1D gene, is amplified and overexpressed in 15% of breast cancers. PPM1D encodes the Wip1 protein phosphatase and can cooperate with the RAS oncogene to transform primary cells. Reversing the overexpression of PPM1D with RNA interference in human breast cancer cell lines induces apoptosis and blocks tumorigenicity, suggesting that Wip1 could be a target for the development of a new cancer therapeutic.
     Genomic analysis of human tumors for DNA copy number alterations has produced a large set of candidate cancer genes, yet their functional significance is largely unexplored. A key challenge for our future research is to devise a high throughput system that can evaluate large sets of candidate cancer genes for their potential role in cellular transformation and tumor biology. This will allow us to move beyond the mere description of genomic DNA copy number alterations to the identification of underlying genes that are driving tumor formation.These are modular, multi-domain peptides that mimic the action of cytokines but are much smaller and vastly more chemically stable than natural cytokine proteins.   These advantages make them ideal for multiple bioengineering applications.  One set of analogs (the F2A series) were designed to stimulate the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR1) complex and they function as mimetics of bFGF (a.k.a. FGF-2).  These do, in fact, confer radiation protection to cells and to whole animals subjected to controlled doses of ionizing radiation.  But since cytokines / growth factors have multiple actions, we are pursuing other avenues as well.  For example, one wound healing application is where a derivatized heparin can be coated onto any medical device surface or film followed by a coating of F2A which can subsequently elute from the surface/film to provide local delivery of a growth factor mimetic to a wound site.  It is one of our goals to make chemical modifications to each component in order to control the rate of delivery.  bFGF is also involved the differentiation of bone forming cells (osteodifferentiation) and we are working on F2As, for example, in models of ectopic bone formation in biodegradable scaffolds and matrices.  Another set of analogs (the B2A series) were designed to target the receptors of bone morphogenic protein-2 (BMP-2), and we are working on these in similar bone models.  Future analogs may focus on cartilage formation, wound repair, and nerve repair.  Finally, by chemically modifying one of the domains (modules), we can couple a radioactive tracer such as a positron-emitting isotope.  Thus we are working on a new generation of PET probes to detect the upregulation of cytokine receptors and are currently focused on an animal model of an inflammatory CNS disease, Multiple Sclerosis.   Apart from micro-PET development, in all of our animal work, we extensively employ micro-MRI and micro-CT.

Ph.D. - Columbia University, 1983

Associate Professor
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories

Phone:(516) 422-4085
Email: powers@cshl.edu
URL: https://www.cshl.org/public/SCIENCE/powers.html
 

Louis A. Peña
Associate Scientist

While trying to develop novel radiation protection drugs, we developed a method to make analogs (mimetics) of heparin-binding cytokines / growth factors.  These are modular, multi-domain peptides that mimic the action of cytokines but are much smaller and vastly more chemically stable than natural cytokine proteins.   These advantages make them ideal for multiple bioengineering applications.  One set of analogs (the F2A series) were designed to stimulate the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR1) complex and they function as mimetics of bFGF (a.k.a. FGF-2).  These do, in fact, confer radiation protection to cells and to whole animals subjected to controlled doses of ionizing radiation.  But since cytokines / growth factors have multiple actions, we are pursuing other avenues as well.  For example, one wound healing application is where a derivatized heparin can be coated onto any medical device surface or film followed by a coating of F2A which can subsequently elute from the surface/film to provide local delivery of a growth factor mimetic to a wound site.  It is one of our goals to make chemical modifications to each component in order to control the rate of delivery.  bFGF is also involved the differentiation of bone forming cells (osteodifferentiation) and we are working on F2As, for example, in models of ectopic bone formation in biodegradable scaffolds and matrices.  Another set of analogs (the B2A series) were designed to target the receptors of bone morphogenic protein-2 (BMP-2), and we are working on these in similar bone models.  Future analogs may focus on cartilage formation, wound repair, and nerve repair.  Finally, by chemically modifying one of the domains (modules), we can couple a radioactive tracer such as a positron-emitting isotope.  Thus we are working on a new generation of PET probes to detect the upregulation of cytokine receptors and are currently focused on an animal model of an inflammatory CNS disease, Multiple Sclerosis.   Apart from micro-PET development, in all of our animal work, we extensively employ micro-MRI and micro-CT.

Ph.D. - University of California, Los Angeles, 1991

Phone: (631) 344-8041
Email: lpena@bnl.gov
URL: http://www.bnl.gov/medical/Personnel/Pena/default.htm
 

Miriam Rafailovich
Professor

While earning her Ph.D. in Nuclear Physics, Miriam Rafailovich specialized in the study of magnetic properties of metals using nuclear techniques. She then took an appointment at Brookhaven National Laboratory where she did further studies in the field of solid state magnetism before she joined the Materials Science department. Today, Rafailovich now devotes most of her research effort to the study of polymers. In this area, she has worked on problems of ordering in polymer mixtures and at liquid interfaces, defect structures in block polymer systems, adhesion between different polymers and dynamics of ion-containing polymers. Her experiments on polymers involve atomic force microscopy, electron microscopy, X-ray and neutron reflection measurements, and ion scattering.

Ph.D. - State University of New York at Stony Brook, 1980

Phone: (631) 632-8483
Email: MRafailovich@ccmail.sunysb.edu
URL: http://www.matscieng.sunysb.edu/rafail1.html
 

Jahangir Rastegar
Associate Professor

Jahangir Rastegar is the director of the Robotics Research Laboratory. His research interests are in the areas of kinematics, dynamics and control, with application to the design and performance analysis of robotic systems, smart structures, high speed and precision computer controlled machinery, and biological systems. He has published over 140 papers in the aforementioned areas. His work has also resulted in five issued and ten pending U.S. patents. His research is currently funded by the National Science Foundation and the Army Research Office.

Ph.D. - Stanford University, 1977

Phone: (631) 632-8314
Email: Rastegar@motion.eng.sunysb.edu
 

Nathaniel Reichek
Professor
Director, Research Department, St. Francis Hospital

Research Interests:

M.D. - Columbia University, 1965

Email: Nathaniel.Reichek@chsli.org
 

Nand K. Relan
Professor and Chief of the Division of Cancer Prevention

Ph.D., DABR

Assistant Professor of Radiology
TH Medical Physicist of Nuclear Medicine
University Hospitial Medical Center
Stony Brook University

Phone:(631) 444-3718
 

Basil Rigas
Professor and Chief of the Division of Cancer Prevention

Basil Rigas, MD, DSc graduated from Athens University and did postgraduate work at Brown (Medicine), Brandeis (Biochemistry), and Yale (Gastroenterology at Yale-New Haven Hospital and Molecular Biology in the Department of Human Genetics). He served on the faculty at Cornell University (Departments of Medicine and Molecular Microbiology), Rockefeller University and the Institute for Cancer Prevention (formerly known as the American Health Foundation). Currently, he is a Professor of Medicine and also of Pharmacological Sciences and Chief of the Division of Cancer Prevention at SUNY at Stony Brook.
      During the last several years he has focused his efforts on the prevention of colon cancer using traditional NSAIDs, NO-donating NSAIDs and other pharmacological agents. He has also pioneered the application of infrared spectroscopy to biology with emphasis on cancer holding several relevant patents.

MD, DSc. - Athens University

Professor of Medicine and Pharmacological Science
Chief of the Division of Cancer Prevention
Stony Brook University

Phone:(631) 632-9166
Email: basil.rigas@sunysb.edu
URL: http://inf-web.informatics.sunysb.edu/som/cancer_prevention/rigas.cfm
 

Robert C. Rizzo
Assistant Professor

The primary goal of our research group is to develop novel methods that promote successful application of computational techniques to drug discovery for life threatening diseases, including HIV/AIDS, SARS, influenza, and cancer. Research includes both development and application. Computation is used to quantify and understand molecular recognition events at the atomic level. Molecular dynamics simulations and docking (virtual screening) are the dominant techniques employed to simulate how drugs (primarily small organic molecules) interact with a given target (usually a protein). Improved computational methods dramatically reduce the time and costs associated with drug discovery and development.

Ph.D. - Yale University, 2001

Phone: (631) 632-9340
Email: rizzo@ams.sunysb.edu
URL: http://www.ams.sunysb.edu/~rizzo