Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
STEM
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
STEM

Developmental biologist garners highly competitive National Institutes of Health grant

Thursday, September 8, 2011, By News Staff
Share
College of Arts and SciencesResearch and Creative

Katharine Lewis, associate professor of biology in Syracuse University’s College of Arts and Sciences, aims to systematically identify genes that instruct spinal cord nerve cells (neurons) to develop into specialized cells that are critical to walking, running and countless movements most people take for granted. It’s a novel area of research for which the National Institutes of Health awarded her a $405,750 exploratory/developmental research grant.

neuronsNIH exploratory grants are intended to encourage novel research that breaks new ground or extends previous discoveries toward new directions or applications.

Spinal cord nerve cells acquire characteristics that are specific for particular functions. Some cells specialize in gathering sensory information (touch, pain, hot, cold), while others specialize in movement. Those that control movement include motor neurons, which tell muscles to contract or expand; and interneurons, which process information related to movement and locomotion. In effect, interneurons are the local computers for motor neurons.

Lewis focuses on the characteristics of five distinct interneurons that specialize in regulating movement. She is trying to identify all of the regulatory genes that are turned on in each of these interneurons and test which of these genes instruct the cells to develop specialized characteristics that determine how the interneurons communicate with other cells.

“While a number of these genes have been found, we don’t know if they are the most important genes for the processes or what percentage of the genes have been identified,” Lewis says. “This critical gap in our knowledge dramatically impedes our ability to treat spinal cord injuries and diseases that affect movement.”

Lewis was appointed to the college’s Department of Biology in 2010. She also holds an appointment in the Graduate Faculty Organization at the State University of New York Upstate Medical University. Prior to her SU appointment, she was a Royal Society University Research Fellow in the Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom. The highly competitive fellowship is awarded to outstanding, early- to mid-career scientists who demonstrate a potential to become leaders in their field.

Lewis holds a Ph.D. from University College of London, and has been a fellow of King’s College, Cambridge. Other honors include a National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts Crucible Fellowship; a five-year term as an elective committee member of the British Society of Developmental Biology; and a Wellcome International Prize Traveling Research Fellowship.

  • Author

News Staff

  • Recent
  • Arts and Sciences Hosts Inaugural Scholarship and Research Gala
    Friday, May 9, 2025, By Sean Grogan
  • Chancellor Kent Syverud Honored as Distinguished Citizen of the Year at 57th Annual ScoutPower Event
    Thursday, May 8, 2025, By News Staff
  • New Maymester Program Allows Student-Athletes to Develop ‘Democracy Playbook’
    Thursday, May 8, 2025, By Wendy S. Loughlin
  • From Policy to Practice: How AI is Shaping the Future of Education
    Thursday, May 8, 2025, By Christopher Munoz
  • Kohn, Wiklund, Wilmoth Named Distinguished Professors
    Thursday, May 8, 2025, By Wendy S. Loughlin

More In STEM

Chloe Britton Naime Committed to Advocating for Improved Outcomes for Neurodivergent Individuals

Chloe Britton Naime ’25 is about to complete a challenging and rare dual major program in both mechanical engineering from the College of Engineering and Computer Science and neuroscience from the College of Arts and Sciences. Even more impressive? Britton…

Graduating Research Quartet Synthesizes Long-Lasting Friendships Through Chemistry

When Jesse Buck ’25, Isabella Chavez Miranda ’25, Lucy Olcott ’25 and Morgan Opp ’25 started as student researchers in medicinal chemist Robert Doyle’s lab, they hoped to hone their research skills. It quickly became evident this would be unlike…

Biologist Reveals New Insights Into Fish’s Unique Attachment Mechanism

On a wave-battered rock in the Northern Pacific Ocean, a fish called the sculpin grips the surface firmly to maintain stability in its harsh environment. Unlike sea urchins, which use their glue-secreting tube feet to adhere to their surroundings, sculpins…

Distinguished ECS Professor Pramod K. Varshney Establishes Endowed Faculty Fellowship

Distinguished Professor Pramod K. Varshney has exemplified Orange excellence since joining the University as a 23-year-old faculty member. A world-renowned researcher and educator, he’s been recognized for his seminal contributions to information fusion and related fields, introducing new, innovative courses…

Earth Day Spotlight: The Science Behind Heat Pumps (Video)

Peter Wirth has a two-fold strategy when it comes to renovating his home. The Brooklyn, New York, native has called Central New York home for more than 40 years. Nestled on a quiet cul-de-sac in Fayetteville, New York, the 1960s-era…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2025 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.