The Steven A. Cox Scholarship for Cancer Research at Rutgers University

Directed by Professor Kathryn Uhrich
Department of Chemistry & Chemical Biology
Rutgers University

Student researcher and project description: Receiving news of a cancerous tumor is devastating, especially if the cancerous cells have spread, or metastasized. In Dr. Kathryn Uhrich's research laboratory, the goal is not only to develop safer and more efficient ways to deliver drugs including anti-cancer drugs, but also to create ways to deliver imaging agents to better detect cancer and determine whether it has spread. Denise Cullerton, a first year graduate student in this lab and recipient of the 2011-12 Steven A. Cox Scholarship for Cancer Research at Rutgers University, is working to synthesize water-soluble, biocompatible polymers (e.g. plastics) to form nano-sized containers that carry water-insoluble imaging agents. Quantum dots are extremely small "nano-particles" that when exposed to light will fluoresce, releasing colored light. The fluorescence of quantum dots is brighter than other imaging agents currently being used and visible to the naked eye, so expensive MRI or X-ray machines are not needed. The polymer carriers are 'decorated' with specific molecules that target and bind to specific cancer cells. Therefore, the combination of these polymers with the quantum dots will enable doctors to specifically locate cancer cells and see where they may have spread, while being minimally invasive to the patient.

Rutgers University

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a leading national public research university and the state's preeminent, comprehensive public institution of higher education. Rutgers is dedicated to teaching that meets the highest standards of excellence; to conducting research that breaks new ground; and to turning knowledge into solutions for state, national, and global communities.

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Rutgers is New Jersey's land-grant institution and one of the nation's foremost research universities, and as such, we educate, make discoveries, serve as an engine of economic growth, and generate ideas for improving people's lives. More than 52,000 students from all 50 states and 100 countries-including 39,000 undergraduates and 13,600 graduate students-choose Rutgers for their education. Support for students has never been more important given the economic turbulence impacting the state and nation.

With the generous help of alumni, corporations, and foundations, including the Steven A. Cox Foundation, Rutgers can continue to advance its educational mission. Read more