This is the first decent article I wrote for the local school paper, "The Towers." And if you can, I strongly suggest you meet Dr. David Adams. He is brilliant, interesting, and entertaining!

Biology Research at Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Siobhan Barton

Worcester Polytechnic Institute is one of the top schools for science and technology research in the country. Although most well-known for its engineering focus, WPI has a well-developed life sciences program in which many students take part. In President Berkey’s Vision Statement, he concludes that there needs to be a greater effort to expand life science studies at WPI.

There is, however, already a large life science contingency on campus. The MQP and IQP experiences are a big part of undergraduate student research. Professor Michael Buckholt runs the Biology Project Lab in Salisbury Laboratories, which is where students work on their research. With the new edition of the Biomedical Engineering Sciences Building, Gateway Park, life sciences looks to be an expanding field at WPI. Faculty research is a big part of any university, and WPI is proud to have the work of several professors on display, most notably the research Professor David S. Adams.

Dr. Adams’ contribution to the study of Alzheimer’s disease has provided the springboard for all further attempts to understand this debilitating disease. On February 9th, 1995, Dr. Adams published as second author the cover story of Nature, sharing his research with the world.
Alzheimer’s disease is not fully understood. The general concept is that every person has on their brain cell membranes amyloid precursor protein, but, when cut incorrectly they form beta amyloid which is neurotoxic (poisonous to brain cells). The beta amyloid aggregates together and forms senile plaques. Although senile plaques are not directly linked to Alzheimer’s, they are present in almost all Alzheimer’s patients.

Dr. Adams hopes to reverse this process. There are already several drugs on the market which counteract the symptoms of Alzheimer’s, but the cause of the disease is still untreatable. Dr. Adams is working with neurotrophic (neuro=brain; trophic=growth) factors, which will hopefully increase the growth of nerve cells in the brain.

The only issue is that there is a protective layer surrounding the brain called the blood-brain barrier. Neurotrophic factors are unable to pass through this wall and are therefore incapable of encouraging the growth of new brain cells. The goal is to use mimetic neurotrophic factors, which have shorter amino acid sequences and are thus smaller, to get through the blood-brain barrier.
Looking ahead, Dr. Adams thinks the future is bright for those affected by Alzheimer’s disease. “I think the wave of the future is going to be combined therapies.” Elan Pharmaceuticals is currently using antibodies which can cross the blood-brain barrier and indirectly remove the neurotoxins from the brain. This however does not restore memories. Dr. Adams believes that a combination of antibodies and mimetic neurotrophic factors will one day soon work to regenerate the brain.

The goal of medicine is to make the world a better place to live. Research in biology and biotechnology at WPI is working to succeed in this field. The project mind-set means that students and faculty are continually involved in work that can change the world, making WPI an innovative leader in biological research.