By Katie Vasenina
USF Research News

TAMPA, Fla. – Lucia Alba-Ferrara, a recent postdoctoral research scientist at the University of South Florida in Tampa, is the editor of Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation: Methods, Clinical Uses and Effects on the Brain, a new book published by Nova Science Publishers on Aug. 22, 2013.

Lucia Alba-Ferrara

Alba-Ferrara recently completed a research fellowship in the department of Psychiatry & Neuroscience at USF and is now a postdoctoral research fellow at Stanford Research Institute, with an affiliation to Stanford University.

“My research is focused on the brain basis of addictive behavior as revealed by functional neuroimaging,” said Alba-Ferrara. “I am starting a project which takes into account narratives – such as feel of identity, emotion, moral decision making, and social cognition – which make some patients with substance abuse disorders resilient to relapse, and how these narratives modulate neurobiological mechanisms.”

Katie Vasenina can be reached at vasenina@usf.edu.

By Chris Prinzel
USF CONNECT

TAMPA, Fla. – Lighthouse Guidance Systems, Inc. (LHG Systems), a Florida based education technology company, has partnered with Pinellas and Hillsborough County school systems, providing its academic planning software, LGS Connect, to high schools and middle schools throughout the districts. The product was launched this past May.

LGS Connect provides guidance counselors and school administrators with a new method for monitoring student academic progression. Through its text message infrastructure, counselors can schedule appointments with students and parents, as well as track GPA performance, via text. Using the system, students can create a personalized academic track that tells them what they need to achieve to be accepted into the college or university of their choice.

“LGS Connect is an innovative counselor resource that assists counselors with accurately advising students’ individual goals.” stated Andrew Weatherill, the K-12 Guidance Supervisor for Pinellas County Schools.

Founded by William Farragut in 2010, LHG Systems has been developing programs with the goal of advancing modern education, and in August of 2012 joined USF CONNECT’s Tampa Bay Technology Incubator at the University of South Florida.

“Lighthouse Guidance Systems will not only satisfy the state mandate, which requires students to have a personalized academic electronic planner, it will provide students and parents with the tools necessary to monitor the student's weighted/unweighted Grade Point Average (GPA), graduation requirements, Bright Futures GPA and community service hours along with the State University System recalculated GPA for college admissions,” said Ansberto Vallejo, Supervisor for Career and Postsecondary Planning for Hillsborough County Public Schools. “Our middle school, high school and college and career counselors are excited about utilizing Lighthouse Guidance Systems.”

Chris Prinzel can be reached at cprinzel@usf.edu.

TAMPA, Fla. – Julie Serovich, dean of the College of Behavioral and Community Sciences at the University of South Florida, has received a $3.3 million grant to study the decision to disclose one’s HIV status to family members. Serovich received the grant with USF co-investigators Sandra Reed of the department of Child and Family Studies and Celia Lescano of the department of Mental Health Law and Policy.

“Most research thus far has focused on the disclosure event,” said Serovich. “There hasn’t been much attention paid to the decision-making process behind disclosing. Deciding to tell or not to tell is important.”

Dr. Julie Serovich (Photo: Aimee Blodgett, USF News).

The aim of the study is to refine and evaluate intervention methods designed to enhance the HIV disclosure decision-making process, as well as increase the comfort and acceptance of the decision among those living with HIV. The study is based on the Consequences Theory of Disclosure, which suggests that positive persons weigh the rewards and costs of disclosing their HIV status to their families, and make the choice to disclose when the benefits outweigh the costs.

“The decision to disclose one’s HIV status has been known to create considerable emotional stress,” said Serovich, “while disclosure to family members has been linked to increased social support, improved health outcomes, reduced loneliness and stress, and improved HIV management.”

The study specifically aims to assess the effectiveness of intervention techniques; examine its effects over time; explore the mediating effects of disclosure decision making on outcomes such as self-efficacy, preparation, and conflict; explore moderating effects of participant demographics; and evaluate the effectiveness of treatment engagement, retention, and expectations on outcomes.

“At this point there is no evidence-based practice that has been developed to help persons living with HIV make the decision to disclose their status to their family,” said Serovich. “Additional support in the decision-making process may improve disclosure outcomes, and ultimately impact the health and quality of life of those living with HIV and their families.”

TAMPA, Fla. – USF Research & Innovation has announced the first call for grant applications for the Fall 2013 competition: the first cycle of the Faculty International Travel and Conference Support grants, due Sep. 23, 2013, at 5 pm, and the only cycle for the New Researcher and Creative Scholarship grants, due Nov. 18, 2013, at 5 pm.

The grant programs are available to USF System faculty who are tenured, tenure earning, or in non-tenured (regularly renewable) positions that require independent research. Applications are located on the Internal Awards Program website.

Applications include mandatory questions that must be fully answered in order to be accepted for review. Proposals submitted will receive an initial administrative review for eligibility and completeness and will be evaluated using a peer review process. Recommendations are made by the USF Research Council to the Senior Vice President for Research & Innovation. All decisions are final.

Recipients of the Faculty International Travel and Conference Support grants will be announced Nov. 8, 2013. Recipients of the New Researcher and Creative Scholarship grants will be announced Feb. 14, 2014. The Spring 2014 competition will be announced at a later time.

Grant Types and Timelines

Faculty International Travel Grants provide financial support for scholarly and artistic presentations by USF System faculty at major professional meetings or conferences outside the U.S. The primary goal of the program is to enhance the international visibility and prestige of the USF System. Consequently, the highest priority will be given to faculty who are personally invited to give keynote speeches, plenary presentations or other major addresses, presentations, or performances. In addition to the type of the presentation, the prestige and scope of conference will also be considered. The maximum award amount is $2,500 per trip. The award period is event specific. The award can only be used for travel specified and during the time period cited in the proposal.

Conference Support Grants provide supplemental funding for the planning and implementation of national and international conferences to enhance the research and creative environment, along with bringing prestige and recognition to the USF System and the State of Florida. The maximum award amount is $5,000 and recipients have 12 months from the award date to hold the conference.

New Researcher Grants are designed for early career faculty who are new to the USF System (employment of four years or less) and do not have established funding sources (external or college/departmental). The program’s goal is to enable new faculty to launch productive research, scholarship, or artistic expression/performance activities that will ultimately result in grant funding from external agencies or foundations. This grant will fund pilot, draft, or preliminary studies/projects. It is expected that these results will provide the basis for external grant proposals, as well as publication or exhibition of the results. The maximum award amount is $10,000. The award period is 12 months. The grant starts the first day of the month after the award announcement.

Creative Scholarship Grants provide support for programs that will result in research scholarship, creation of new work, exhibition, or performance. It is hoped that these awards will enhance the profile and prestige of the USF System and possibly result in securing external funding. The maximum award amount is $10,000. The award period is 12 months and the grant starts the first day of the month following the award announcement.

Additional information is available at the Internal Awards Program website. For questions contact Brenda Simmons at bsimmons@usf.edu or 813-974-8778.

About the Internal Awards Program

The mission of the University of South Florida Internal Awards Program is to foster excellence in research and scholarship by USF System faculty and support activities aimed at securing extramural funding. In the allocation of funds across program categories, the highest priority is given to initiatives aimed at funding activities likely to enable leveraging for additional extramural funding and to initiatives aimed at scholarly activities for which availability of extramural funding is extremely limited.

USF researcher Jody Harwood co-authored paper comparing human viruses to bacteriophages as markers

TAMPA, Fla. - Valerie (Jody) Harwood, University of South Florida professor of Integrative Biology, is the lead author on a paper just published in Water Research, A Journal of the International Water Association, comparing the use of human viruses and bacteriophages as markers of fecal and sewage waste contamination of freshwater. The paper reports on the largest multi-laboratory study on microbial source tracking to date.

Working with a team of researchers from 12 other universities and government agencies from around the world, Harwood evaluated the accuracy of microbial source tracking (MST) methods using challenge fecal and sewage samples spiked into artificial freshwater samples. The samples were provided as blind test samples to the various laboratories involved in the study.

The study found that most of the human virus strains tested were specific indicators for human fecal contamination of freshwater, while the bacteriophages were much less specific. "Better concentration methods are needed to make the testing methods more sensitive to low levels of pollution," said Harwood.

The full study can be accessed here.

Marty Martin and Thomas Unnasch will study hormone effects in zebra finches.

By Katie Vasenina
USF Research News

TAMPA, Fla. – University of South Florida (USF) researchers Lynn (Marty) Martin and Thomas Unnasch were recently awarded a four year, $600k National Science Foundation (NSF) research grant to study the effects of stress hormones on West Nile virus resistance, tolerance and transmission.

According to the NSF-IOS grant, the researchers are going to study the role of stress hormones in superspreading – how the behavioral and physiological traits of approximately 20% of hosts in populations make them responsible for about 80% of infections. Collected data will be used to determine when stress hormones have the largest impact in the mosquito/bird/virus disease cycle, information valuable for human and wildlife populations.

(Photo: Bracken Bird Farm)

Martin is associate professor of Integrative Biology. He did his postdoctoral research in neuroscience at The Ohio State University, and earned his Ph.D. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton University, before joining USF in 2007. Martin’s research is focused on ecological physiology and immunology. According to its website, The Martin Lab of Organismal Biology researches how individuals endure and thrive in their natural environments.

“Our research focuses on vertebrate immune and endocrine systems, but our interests span many levels,” said Martin.

Thomas Unnasch is department chair and professor of Global Health. He was a postdoctoral scholar at Harvard University, earned his Ph.D. at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and joined USF in 2007. Unnasch’s research is focused on vector-borne diseases and human filarial infections. His laboratory concentrates on research areas with a direct impact on disease control and elimination programs targeting vector-borne pathogens worldwide. Unnasch recently published research on river blindness in Central America.

NSF is an independent federal agency with an annual budget of $7 billion, funding approximately 20% of all federally-supported basic research conducted by colleges and universities in the United States.

Katie Vasenina can be reached at vasenina@usf.edu.

By Judy Lowry
USF Research News

TAMPA, Fla. – USF Research & Innovation is seeking faculty nominations for the Excellence in Innovation Award. The deadline to submit nominations with support documents is Sep. 9, 2013.

The Excellence in Innovation Award recognizes exceptional achievement in technological innovation and its transfer to practice, industrial partnerships, and/or commercialization during the 2012 calendar year. The award is given annually to USF faculty members from any USF System institution and includes $2,000 to each winner.

More than one award may be given depending on the caliber of the applications. Award(s) will be presented at the annual luncheon of the USF Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors® (NAI) on Oct. 21, 2013.

The faculty member should be nominated by a dean, chairperson, or center/institute director, although self-nominations will be accepted.

“The object of the award is to encourage and reward the highest levels of technological innovation and entrepreneurial success,” said Dr. Paul Sanberg, Senior Vice President for Research and Innovation. “The program acknowledges our best scholars and investigators, and we hope it will inspire continued high-quality research, innovation, and entrepreneurship throughout the university.”

Achievements will typically be in the following general areas, but other related activities will also be considered:

• Development of new intellectual property (e.g., issued patent, patent application)
• Entrepreneurial activity (e.g., a USF-based start-up company, working closely with an established company, license agreement)
• Transition of a pre-clinical discovery into the clinic
• Commercialization of a USF-discovered product
• Funding obtained through federal programs, such as STIR or SBIR grants
• Significant publications in technology (e.g., Science, Nature Biotechnology)

The Call for Nominations is here. For questions contact Tina Lucas at USF Research & Innovation, (813) 974-7988, tlucas@usf.edu

Judy Lowry can be reached at jhlowry@usf.edu or 813-974-3181.

TAMPA, Fla. - USF Research & Innovation has announced the opening of the nomination period for the Outstanding Research Achievement Awards. The deadline for receipt of nominations and support documents is Sep. 3, 2013. Deans, department chairs and center/institute directors are invited to nominate faculty. Faculty cannot self-nominate for this award, so all nominations must come from the department chair or center/institute director and be endorsed by the dean.

“The Outstanding Research Achievement Award recognizes faculty who have received truly exceptional recognition of their research with preeminent awards, grants, or publications in top journals,” said Dr. Paul Sanberg, senior vice president for research and innovation.

The awards, which include $2,000 to each winner, will be presented to USF faculty with exceptional research achievements accomplished or recognized during the period between January 1, 2012, and December 31, 2012. Awardees will be recognized at the Faculty Research Awards Luncheon on Monday, Oct 28, 2013.

Details are available in the Call for Nominations .

Nomination and supporting documents must be sent from the dean’s office with his/her endorsement to Brenda Simmons, Sponsored Research, USF Mail Stop: 30338 USF Holly Dr., to be received by September 3.

For more information, contact Brenda Simmons at 813-974-8778 or bsimmons@usf.edu

From the State University System of Florida Board of Governors: Did U Know?

TAMPA, Fla. - In 2011-2012, Florida’s universities received more than $1.6 billion in research awards. The largest portion of awards went to sciences and engineering. Below are the five disciplines that received the greatest amounts:

• Health and related sciences, 31%
• Engineering, 16%
• Physical sciences, 8%
• Biology and biomedical sciences, 7%
• Agriculture and related sciences, 5%

Learn more here.

Why should you care? Research is not only a significant part of a university’s mission but also a cornerstone of economic development—leading to job creation, commercialization, academic innovation and quality student experiences.

Bottom line? The State University System provides a good return on investment.

About Did U Know?

Each week the Florida Board of Governors shares a tidbit about how our state universities provide a good return on investment. For more information visit the Did U Know page.

By Katie Vasenina
USF Research News

TAMPA, Fla. – The Byzantine Art of War by Michael Decker, associate professor of history at the University of South Florida, has been nominated for a Notable Book Award in 2013.

(Photo: B. Djerib)

(Photo: Westholme Publishing)

By Katie Vasenina
USF Research News

TAMPA, Fla. – University of South Florida professor of psychology Toru Shimizu is co-author of two articles published this month in academic journals, with one featured in the July issue of Science.

"Distinct neural circuits underlie assessment of a diversity of natural dangers by American crows," was published online in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B on July 3, 2013. This research was featured in Science magazine. Science author Virginia Morell described the research as "a new brain-scanning method [that] offers a window into the brains of birds, which have emerged as the surprising stars of many animal cognition studies."

USF professor Toru Shimizu's work with birds is providing insights into the mysteries of intelligence shared by both birds and humans (Photo: Aimee Blodgett, USF News)

The second article, "Large-scale network organization in the avian forebrain: a connectivity matrix and theoretical analysis," was published online in the Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience on July 4. Using mathematical tools, the research demonstrated the similarity of brain connections between birds and mammals.

Shimizu's research is focused on visual information processing, animal cognition, comparative neuroscience, and evolution of the brain. He leads the Comparative Cognition and Neuroscience laboratory at USF.

(Photo: Aimee Blodgett, USF News)

"One of our major goals is to understand the neural basis of cognitive abilities in non-human animals, birds in particular" said Shimizu. "We now know that birds are capable of using tools, solving new problems, and planning for the future. Studying their brains and behaviors provides us with important insights into the mysteries of intelligence that are shared by humans."

Shimizu joined USF in 1991. He received his M.S. and Ph. D. degrees in psychology from the University of Maryland and was a post-doctoral neuroscientist at the University of California, San Diego. He has been a visiting professor at Keio University in Japan and helped to facilitate a collaborative research agreement between the psychology departments of Keio and USF.

By Lauren Golin
USF Research News

TAMPA, Fla. – University of South Florida startup company, Trash2Cash-Energy, LLC, was recently selected for Stage 1 of NCIIA's E-Team Program in the spring 2013 cycle. The company was one of only 40 teams chosen for this national program.

Trash2Cash has licensed from USF a proprietary gas to liquid process that converts naturally produced landfill gas to hydrocarbon fuels specific to the customers need, such as gasoline, diesel, or aviation fuel.

From left: Babu Joseph, Syed Gardezi and John Kuhn

Trash2Cash was founded in 2012 by Assistant Professor John Kuhn and Professor Babu Joseph, USF student Syed Gardezi, and recent USF graduates Timothy Roberge and Devin Walker. The company's gas to fuel technology is a revolutionary, patent pending process that not only provides a renewable source of energy but greatly reduces the amount of emissions produced by the landfills.

NCIIA's E-Team Program was launched in fall 2012 to provide early-stage support and funding for collegiate entrepreneurs working on market-based technology inventions. E-Team grants have been funding collegiate student and student/faculty teams to move ideas out of the lab and classroom and into the marketplace. The E-Team Program also provides expert entrepreneurial and venture coaching, experiential workshops, and a potential investment opportunity to help realize the commercial success of technology inventions and innovations.

As a NCIIA E-Team, Trash2Cash will participate in a three-day Venture Lab workshop which will take place Aug. 2-4 and will focus on accelerating the company's project to better position the technical and commercial aspects of their innovation.

"We are very excited to be selected as a NCIIA E-Team," said Kuhn. "We anticipate that this opportunity will strengthen Trash2Cash-Energy's business growth and ties to USF as we continue forward toward our goal of renewable fuels from landfill gas."

Lauren Golin can be reached at 813-974-0102 or lgolin@usf.edu.

By Katie Vasenina
USF Research News

TAMPA, Fla. – The University of South Florida is hosting a series of grant writing workshops this summer to assist USF faculty, staff and graduate students in creating successful grant applications. This year's Summer Grant Writing Workshops focus on funding opportunities, grants, proposal writing and peer review processes.

The 2-day workshops run through Aug. 14, 2013, and are held on the USF Tampa campus.

Registration is open and free for everyone at USF. For details on upcoming workshops and to register go to: http://www.cas.usf.edu/research/workshop/schedule.

Workshops are led by faculty with experience and notable success in grant writing who will share best practices and insights to help participants create excellent proposals. The workshops are presented by the College of Arts and Sciences and sponsored by USF Research & Innovation.

Upcoming workshops include:

The Prestigious Fellowships and Grants in the Humanities workshop, June 19 and 21, 2013, in the USF Marshall Student Center, Room 4200. The workshop will be led by Roger Ariew, whose expertise is in NEH funding, and Kevin Yelvington, who has experience with private foundation funding and with Guggenheim.

The NSF Standard Grants workshop, July 9 and 11, 2013, will be led by Brian Space from the department of Chemistry and Becky Zarger from the department of Anthropology.

The Compelling Writing for Persuasive Grants workshop, July 16 and 18, 2013, will be led by Diane Donnelly and Michael Shuman, both from the department of English. Donnelly and Shuman have expertise in grant-specific technical writing. The Compelling Writing workshop provides training that participants can utilize for all grant applications.

For more information, contact cas-research@usf.edu.