Byline: Jessica Cunha
Publication: YourOttawaRegion.com
Date: Wednesday March 16th, 2011
Source: http://www.yourottawaregion.com/news/local/article/967553–kanata-resident-works-with-world-experts-on-aging
Summary
Kanata resident works with world experts on aging. Nikolai Chepelev, a Kanata resident and PhD biology student at Carleton University will spend a month at the University of Southern California Davis School of Gerontology working with some of the top world experts on the aging process.
It might not be the fountain of youth but a Kanata resident has been selected to study a protein that could help with the aging process.
Nikolai Chepelev, a PhD candidate in biology at Carleton University, left on March 5 for a month to study a protein called Nrf1, which could potentially be a vital player in the aging process and a defence against disease.
He is working at the University of Southern California Davis School of Gerontology with some of the world’s top experts on aging.
“I am certain that I will not uncover the fountain of youth over such a short time period,” wrote Chepelev in an email. “However, that could be a good starting point.”
He said the first step is to determine is the protein is actually important in aging and age-related diseases, while the second is to learn how scientists can use Nrf1 to achieve healthier aging.
“Typically, it takes about 10 years from the point when a protein is found important in human health to the appearance of some chemicals (prototypical drugs) that would undergo clinical trials,” said Chepelev, who was awarded a $2,500 research fellowship by the Society for Free Radical Biology and Medicine to study at the southern university.
The PhD candidate has been studying the protein for close to five years as part of his thesis. He said he’d like to continue his work on the protein once his thesis is completed, and hopes other scientists are drawn to the understudied Nrf1.
“When we have more scientific teams working on the same protein, we have better chance to achieve positive results to solve real problems,” said Chepelev, who also won a Young Investigator Award for his work on Nrf1 and a travel award for his presentation at the sixth Canadian Oxidative Stress Consortium in Manitoba in 2009.
“No one knows why proteins like Nrf1 fail to function properly as we age or get sick. If we did figure this out, it would be a huge scientific discovery.”
Chepelev’s supervisor at the university, Bill Willmore, said the student’s work could help find answers to problems associated with multiple diseases, such as cancer chemoprevention and cardiovascular diseases.
“Nikolai’s work could lead to breakthroughs in a healthier aging process and find solutions to real-world problems,” said Willmore, an associate professor at Carleton in the Institute of Biochemistry.
Chepelev said he’s very grateful for the opportunity given to him to study at the Davis School of Gerontology.
“This opportunity means a lot to me. First, it shows me that my research is taken very seriously by the top experts in the field of free radical biology and medicine. Secondly, it would help me to gain a different experience from a very prestigious lab.”