M. Sririam Iyengar, PhD, MS assistant professor University of Texas School of Health Information Sciences
	Cytoview, collaboration project with Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, India
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has always been on the forefront of new research technology.  Dr. M. Sriram Iyengar is an assistant professor for the School of Health Information Sciences and is helping the university lead this path with his collaborative project, Cytoview. Cytoview, lays a foundation for symbolic software representing the physical structure of mammalian cells.  It was the creation of a joint proposal to the Department of Biotechnology of the Government of India between two co-principal investigators, Professor Nagasuma Chandra and Professor N. Balakrishnan, and Dr. Iyengar. “A cell is viewed as various components and these components vary from cell to cell. We felt that there was a need for a symbolic knowledge base of them and their relationships,” explains Dr. Iyengar.  The project has the potential to help with applications of tissue engineering, tumorigenesis, and model cell transport among others. “Surprisingly, I first noticed the award on the TV monitors while waiting for the elevator and thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to further my work,” says Dr. Iyengar.  He hopes to utilize the award to help provide leadership for the project’s creation and also establish some key aspects of the project, such as time line, milestones, and administrative interaction.  The award will also help establish a Memorandum of Understanding with the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, India, who is collaborating in the project. Dr. Iyengar will also visit Rajiv Gandhi College of Engineering in Chennai, India to help continue and further UTHSC-H’s relationship with the institution. Dr. Iyengar was very happy and thankful when he received the award and plans to utilize it to help with travel expenses to India in the spring of 2007 for his 14 day trip. “I would personally like to thank the Office of International Programs, and praise their efforts in International collaborations.”