News

Antarctic Microbes Produce Novel Chemicals
MSI PI Christine Salomon (associate professor, Center for Drug Design) and colleagues have published a study of microbes living on wood structures built by Antarctic explorers in the early 20th century. The research team analyzed the microbes with the hope that they might produce compounds that could prove useful for medicines. The researchers discovered some compounds that were previously unknown.
Meeting the University’s Expanding Data-Storage Needs
Research at the University of Minnesota is driving greatly expanded needs for data storage. To meet those needs, the University has created the University Storage Council (USC), composed of representatives from throughout the U, that is charged with making data storage for researchers efficient and cost-effective. Director of Research Computing Claudia Neuhauser is a member of USC.
MSI PI Lauren Linderman Receives NSF CAREER Award
MSI PI Lauren Linderman (assistant professor, Civil, Environmental, and Geo- Engineering) has been awarded a CAREER grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). These grants are awarded to early-career faculty in order to build a foundation for a lifetime of leadership in integrating education and research.
Stratus Storage Platform at MSI
In order to meet the high-capacity storage needs of its users, MSI has deployed an OpenStack-based cloud platform called Stratus. Stratus is designed so that users can store and analyze protected data, such as dbGaP (database of Genomes and Phenotypes).
MSI PI Peter Reich Named to National Academy of Sciences
MSI PI Peter Reich (Regents Professor, Forest Resources; Fellow, Institute on the Environment) has been named to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences (NAS). This is one of the highest honors a scientist can receive. Membership is awarded based on outstanding contributions to scientific research.                                                                                                                          
Developing a Male Contraceptive
Research by MSI PI Gunda Georg and her colleagues may have made the goal of reversible male contraceptives a bit closer. In the cover article of the March 8, 2018 issue of Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, the researchers reveal that modified ouabain, a poison found in African plants, can temporarily paralyze sperm, so that they are not able to fertilize an egg.
3D Printing on Skin
MSI PI Michael McAlpine (Mechanical Engineering) led a group of researchers who successfully used a 3D printer to print electronics on the back of a real human hand. This research could be used by soldiers, who could get temporary sensors to detect biological or chemical agents or solar cells to charge electronic equipment. The researchers were also able to print cells directly onto a skin wound, which could lead to new treatments for wounds and the ability to create skin grafts.
May 2018 Maintenance
On Wednesday, May 2, 2018, MSI staff will perform scheduled maintenance and upgrades to various MSI systems. Primary Storage, Mesabi, and Itasca will be unavailable throughout much of the day. A global system reservation will start at 6am on May 2. Jobs that cannot be completed before 6am on May 2 will be held until after maintenance and then started once the system returns to production status. May maintenance will include:
Carbon Dioxide Levels Affect Grasses Differently Than Expected
MSI PI Peter Reich (professor, Forest Resources; Fellow, Institute on the Environment) was the lead researcher in a study, published this month in the prestigious journal Science, that showed unexpected growth performance of some types of grasses as carbon dioxide levels rise. This 20-year study investigated the response of two types of grasses, classified as C3 and C4 types, to elevated CO2 levels.
Creating Soft Robots With 3D Printing
MSI PI Michael McAlpine (Mechanical Engineering) is working with the US Army Research Lab (ARL) to create soft robots inspired by invertebrates. They are using 3D printing technology to create these robots, which will have much better capabilities for working in congested and urban environments. The researchers have created a prototype of a soft actuator that has tunable parameters, and is fully 3D printed.
A Gene That Protects Against Brain-Cell Loss
MSI PI Apostolos Georgopoulos (Director, Brain Sciences Center professor, Neuroscience) is a co-author on a recent study that discovered a gene allele that seems to protect a person from age-related loss of brain cells. This discovery could be the basis for development of a treatment that can mimic the allele’s effect. The study was published in March 2018 in the journal eBioMedicine.
Alcohol and the Adolescent Brain
MSI PI Monica Luciana (Chair, Psychology) studies brain development in adolescents, including how the developing brain is affected by the use of alcohol and other drugs such as marijuana. She is part of a large research group, The Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) consortium, that is following 11,500 children over at least five years. The goal of this project is to find strategies for preventing and treating substance abuse.
MSI PI William Pomerantz Named McKnight Presidential Fellow
William Pomerantz, an MSI PI from the Department of Chemistry (College of Science and Engineering) has been named a McKnight Presidential Fellow. This program recognizes exceptional faculty who have been newly granted tenure and promotion to associate professor. The complete list of this year’s Fellows can be found on the Scholars Walk website.
MSI PIs Receive Research Grants From Morris Animal Foundation
Two MSI PIs from the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine have received grants from the Morris Animal Foundation (Denver, Colorado) to support their research into canine cancers:
MSI PI Christy Haynes Receives Guggenheim Fellowship
Professor Christy Haynes, an MSI PI from the Department of Chemistry, has been awarded a 2018 Guggenheim Fellowship. Professor Haynes uses MSI resources for projects related to the study of inflammatory response and drugs to fight inflammation. Her Guggenheim project will take her to the Instituto de Tecnologia Quimica at the Universitat Politecnica de Valencia for the 2018-19 academic year.
Three MSI PIs Named Distinguished McKnight University Professors
Three MSI PIs are among the six University faculty members who have been named Distinguished McKnight University Professors. They are:
Patents Awarded to MSI PIs - Spring 2018
The Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR) has published a list of patents that have been awarded to University researchers during the past few months. Several MSI Principal Investigators, shown below, are on this list. The complete list can be found on the OVPR’s Inquiry blog: Patent Roll Call, Spring 2018. The PIs' MSI pages are linked from their names (PI names are in bold). Software and Information Technology
April 2018 Maintenance
MSI has scheduled an extended downtime for all HPC systems starting Tuesday, April 3, 2018, at 6:00 pm. April's extended downtime is required in order to complete the migration of all user data onto new primary storage hardware. The extended time is needed because we will be moving data from our largest group volumes; 0, 2, 4, and 5.
MSI PI Pinar Karaca-Mandic Awarded Grant From American Cancer Society
MSI PI Pinar Karaca-Mandic, an associate professor in the Carlson School of Management and Director of the Medical Industry Leadership Institute, has received a $756,000 from the American Cancer Society to study the launch of biosimilar drugs.
MSI PIs Receive Grants From Minnesota Partnership
Two MSI PIs are among the University faculty who recently received grants from the Minnesota Partnership for Biotechnology and Medical Genomics. The Partnership is a collaboration between the University of Minnesota, Mayo Clinic, and the State of Minnesota that supports biotechnology and biomedical research. The projects receiving grants include researchers from the University and Mayo.

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