AFRRI Scientists




Uniformed Services University

AFRRI Mission

The AFRRI mission is to preserve the health and performance of U.S. military personnel and to protect humankind through research that advances understanding of the effects of ionizing radiation. To these ends, the institute collaboratively researches the biological effects of ionizing radiation and provides medical training and emergency response to manage incidents related to radiation exposure.

Recent Achievements by AFRRI Researchers

Recent achievements by AFRRI researchers include:




Identification of countermeasures that enhance survival in animals experiencing combined radiation injury and other injuries such as wound and burn (“combined injury”). This work is especially challenging because most countermeasures effective against radiation alone have been ineffective against combined injury. AFRRI demonstrated success for combined injury treatment with the following agents: ciprofloxacin (acting via mechanisms other than its wellknown antimicrobial action), ghrelin (a gastrointestinal hormone) and tocolmobilized blood cell progenitors.

A collaborative project, funded by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, will test the radioprotective efficacy of a synthetic Mn-antioxidant peptide in mice. The research involves Dr. Radha Maheshwari and Dr. Michael Daly, both of USU’s Department of Pathology, and Dr. Juliann Kiang of AFRRI. The project is based on new insights implicating the proteome as the critical target in irradiated cells. Providing a remarkable example of USU’s scientific dedication, Daly’s group, which developed the peptide, has been studying the molecular basis of extreme radiation resistance in the bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans since 1992.
