Marine and Freshwater Biomedical Sciences Center

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The Marine and Freshwater Biomedical Sciences Center (MFBSC) uses aquatic species as models of human disease. The MFBSC consists of 6 Cores - 2 Research, 2 Facilities and Services, a Community Outreach, and a Pilot Project and Program Enrichment Core. The 2 Research Cores are supported by extramural grants and OSU, and no research funds or salary are requested. The Director utilizes Internal and Extemal Advisory Committees for guidance on scientific and administrative issues. The MFBSC provides facilities and training for scientists using aquatic models in biomedical research. Training (two NIEHS Training Grants) at the graduate, undergraduate, and postdoctoral levels are important goals of the MFBSC as is education and outreach (also supported by an NIEHS grant) to multiple community groups, including K-12 educators and the general public. The Center maintains its strengths in carcinogenesis, cancer chemoprevention, neurotoxicology and marine natural products. Addition of new faculty expands the focus into developmental toxicology and toxicogenomics. Successful synergism is evidenced by joint grants and publications. A new effort in toxicogenomics provides evidence of synergism among MFBS Centers. The MFBSC makes possible the pursuit of studies of environmental health important regionally, nationally and internationally. Important contributions in the last funding period include: 1) A successful clinical trial in China (directed by the NIEHS Center at Johns Hopkins with G. Bailey as Co-I) of a cancer chemopreventive agent first identified in the trout tumor model; 2) Completion of the largest cancer study in any animal model, that lowered the limit of detection of tumor incidence by more than an order of magnitude and tested the conservative linear model for risk extrapolation; 3) Development of a mobi(e fish cell biosensor of neurotoxins, including nerve gas agents; and 4) Discovery of several extremely potent neurotoxins from marine cyanobacteria that give new insights into the structure and function of the mammalian voltage-gated sodium channel, and may have therapeutic uses. Our goal over the next 5-year funding period is to build on these accomplishments by employing new approaches and technologies to pursue studies on the impacts of environmental chemicals on human health and conveying that information effectively to the public.