Research

UNC Charlotte staff, faculty and students recently participated in the seventh annual Appalachian Energy Summit, hosted by Appalachian State University. The summit is a gathering of energy and sustainability leaders from higher education and other industries to exchange ideas for improving campus performance in energy, buildings, waste, transport, buildings and curriculum.

Cato College of Education Dean Ellen McIntyre authored a recent article that focuses on a UNC Charlotte summer reading camp, which has the potential to be a model for summer programs everywhere.

UNC Charlotte has received approval to offer a Ph.D. in civil engineering; this is the University’s 24th doctoral program. This new degree will provide doctoral-level education for students seeking civil engineering careers in practice, research and teaching/academia.

College of Computing and Informatics Assistant Professor of Bioinformatics Way Sung was awarded a $670,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for the project, “The Evolution and Reprogramming of DNA Replication Fidelity.”

“Mutations are generally bad to the health of an organism and can lead to cancer and other genetic diseases,” said Sung. “The goal of this work is to reprogram cells to enhance their ability to repair and resist DNA mutations. The ultimate goal of our work is to extend cellular longevity, increase cellular health and reduce cancer formation.”

Improving the Persistence and Success of Students from Underrepresented Populations in Computer Science (I-PASS) is a collaboration among UNC Charlotte faculty that has received nearly $1 million in funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

An extensive experiment testing the immune effects of a broad group of lab-designed nucleic acid nanoparticles did not find a strong, uniform immune response, as had been predicted. Instead, the tests found varying and specific responses from different immune cells, depending on each particle’s shape and formulation, a finding that may encourage further study of the particles’ therapeutic use.

Most North Carolinians have known someone who has had kidney or bladder stones. The pain can be excruciating – a stabbing sensation in the side, abdomen or back. UNC Charlotte student Luke Hardy, who is pursuing a doctoral degree in optical science and engineering, is a member of a research team working to transform treatment options.

Physician and UNC Charlotte graduate candidate Saugat Karki was selected recently for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) prestigious Public Health Informatics Fellowship Program (PHIFP).

Mathematics research by one Cato College of Education professor is among scientific findings from 2017 with the potential to change world, according to publishing giant Springer Nature.

“Detecting colorectal cancer early can save health care costs and lives,” said Jennifer Troyer, health economist at UNC Charlotte and interim dean of the College of Health and Human Services. Through a grant from the National Institutes of Health and National Cancer Institute, Troyer worked with researchers at Wake Forest University, UNC Chapel Hill and University of Texas to examine how digital technology can be used to increase the likelihood that patients order a colorectal screening procedure.