CounterACT Research Center of Excellence

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded our Center a five-year grant in 2016, which includes a $16 million grant to the University of Colorado Denver located in Aurora, Colorado (with subcontracts to MRIGlobal, Duke University, University of Texas at Tyler, South Dakota State University, University of California, Irvine and University of California, San Diego).

This center was developed to focus on toxic inhaled chemicals, and to develop new therapeutic measures to enhance our medical response capabilities in the event of an emergency, specifically sulfur mustard poisoning resulting in acute and chronic lung injury, as well as for Methyl isocynate (MIC; “Bhopol agent”. An additional interest is acute cardiopulmonary collapse after inhalation of methyl mercaptan.

The long-term goal of the center is to develop an effective treatment for mustard gas induced injury in the lung to treat sulfur mustard poisoning, a potent chemical warfare vesicant, and to develop similarly effect rescue agents for methyl isocynate and methyle mercaptan. There is an increasing emplasis on the acute, life-threatening effects of these agents.

COUNTERACT PROGRAM'S GOAL

Develop new therapeutic measures to enhance our medical response capabilities in the event of an emergency, specifically sulfur mustard poisoning resulting in acute and chronic lung injury, as well as for Methyl isocynate (MIC; “Bhopol agent”. An additional interest is acute cardiopulmonary collapse after inhalation of methyl mercaptan. A longterm goal of the Denver program is to attain FDA approval for the most effective countermeasures discovered.

Contact Us

Address:
Pediatric Airways Research Center
12700 E. 19th Ave
Mailstop 8615
Room P15-4019
Aurora, CO 80045

Email: gabriele.cheatham@cuanschutz.edu
Phone: 303-724-0744
Fax: 303-724-7334