Other Major Research Projects

• Improving Yam Production and Quality Through the Generation of Planting Materials via in vitro Techniques and Field Experimentation with Farmers by Dr. Helen Asemota from the Department of Basic Medical Sciences—Biochemistry Section
  
• Research into Pathogens other than HTLV-1 in the Causation of Human Cancers by Prof. Barry Hanchard from the Pathology Department
  
• The Rose Project from the Institute of Education
  
• Support to Regional Training in Population and Development by Prof. Uche and Dr. Pat Anderson from the Department of
  Sociology and Social Work
  

Medicine and Medical Sciences; Pure and Applied Sciences and Social Sciences:

• Xanthan gum - has the following properties:
  - It is readily soluble in hot and cold water
  - Solutions display high at rest viscosity and high
  levels of psuedoplasticity
  - It is tolerant to changes in temperature, pH
  and ionic strength
  Xanthan gum has applications in the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and agricultural and petroleum industries – Dr. Michelle Hamilton.
  
• Medicaments for the Treatment of Strongyloides Stercoralis.
  Strongyloides stercoralis is the intestinal worm (threadworm) that infects more than 100 million persons worldwide. This is an often lethal condition. Bioassay of purified isolates confirmed the presence of one component of Spirit Weed that possessed rapid activity and potency against the parasites. In fact, the efficacy of this compound proved to be significantly higher when compared with those of commercially available agents used against Strongyloides. W. Forbes, Ralph Robinson and
  P. Reese. (PATENTED)
  
• Sickle Cell Research
  
• Very active programme in Diabetes Research and Management in its unique form for developing countries. Professor Errol Morrison is working on the use of Medicinal Plant Extracts in treating diabetes mellitus.
  
• Investigation of chemically induced breast cancer in rats – M.T. Gardner, T.L. The and C.K. Fletcher.
  
• Investigation of the medicinal (antidiabetic, antihypertensive, bronchodilator, analgesic and anti-inflammatory) potential and genetic profile of some Jamaican plants.
  
• Investigation of canasol in combination therapy for the treatment of glaucoma; Investigation of the cardiovascular effects of Noni extracts – M.E. West
  
• Investigation of nutritional and health benefits of beans and cowpeas and their potential to reduce cancer and other chronic diseases – a joint collaborative research project between Michigan State University and the Departments of Chemistry and Community Health, UWI.
  
• The Neurobiology of drug addiction: neuro-physiological and behavioural mechanisms associated with addiction – L.E. Young.
  
• Tropical Use of Papaya for Chronic Ulcers – Case Studies – M. Marshall-Burnett, S. Whittle and S. Lopez
  
• Analyses of some natural products in yams (Dioscorea spp.) and the metabolic effects of consumption of yam preparations in the management of diabetes and hypercholesterolemia - H. Asemota, F. Omoruyi, M. McAnuff, L. Dilworth, O. Simon, E. Morrison
  
• The HTLV-I project, a joint collaborative research project between the Department of Pathology and the National Cancer Institute/The National Institutes of Health (NCI/NIH) Bethesda, Maryland USA continues to be the main research project within the Department of Pathology. Now in the 21st year, it has completed a large body of research on all aspects of HTLV-I infection and its associated diseases in Jamaican. This project has done intensive work on Prostate Cancer; Breast Diseases, Cardiovascular Disease, Diabetes Research and the Molecular Pathology of Breast Cancer
  
• Tracking the role of garrison communities in post independence Jamaican politics. The growth and development of garrison communities have been blamed for the worst aspects of crime, violence and bogus voting in Jamaica. By looking at the phenomenon of homogenous voting, Mark Figueroa has been able to track the growth and impact of these communities.