URMC / Virtual Drug Discovery / Projects Projects Below is a list of research projects currently underway at the University of Rochester Medical Center that are related to drug discovery. Projects Funded by NIH Grants Project Title Principal Investigator Staphylococcus Aureus RNA Turnover Properties Paul Dunman Novel Adjunctive Therapies For Neuroaids Harris Gelbard Biomarkers for Esophageal Cancer Progression & Prognosis Tony Godfrey Yeast Lifespan Chemical Screening David Goldfarb Biacore T100 For Research & Drug Discovery In Rochester Clara Kielkopf Selective in Vivo Ablation of Leukemia Stem Cells Craig Jordan Chemical Genetic HTS Assay For Inhibitors Of Fungal Cell Wall Integrity Damian Krysan Discovery and Evaluation of Fungicidal Anti-Cryptococcal Molecules Damian Krysan Gene Networks Essential To Colon Cancer Phenotype Hartmut Land P-1: Targeting Aurora Kinase In Aggressive B-Cell Non-Hodgkin's Lymphomas Daruka Mahadevan SRF/MYOCD: New Targets In Alzheimer's Neurovasculature Joseph Miano Preclinical Development Of Lead Compounds Targeting Myotonic Dystrophy Benjamin Miller Selective Targeting Of G Protein Beta Gamma Subunits With Small Molecules Alan Smrcka Experimental Therapy of Myotonic Dystrophy Charles Thornton RNA-Mediated Mechanisms in the Myotonic Dystrophies Charles Thornton Investigation Of APOBEC3G/VIF Interactions by SAXS and X-ray Crystallography Joseph Wedekind Projects Funded by Foundations and Other Sources Foundation Project Title Principal Investigator Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Screening for small molecule compounds that bind to A3G in cells and turn its anti-viral activity back on. Harold Smith, Ph.D. Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International DLK/MLK Inhibitors for the Treatment of Diabetic Neuropathy Steven Dewhurst, Ph. D.