Medicine receives $15.9 million for INBRE research program North Dakota will receive $15.9 million over five years for a National Institutes of Health (NIH) program aimed at increasing research opportunities, investigators and resources in biomedical research. Health and the environment are the focus of research conducted under the North Dakota IDeA Networks for Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) program. Half of the budget will be used to support research projects at predominantly undergraduate institutions in the state. The statewide network will be administered by the UND School of Medicine and Health Sciences in collaboration with North Dakota State University. Major projects will be led by researchers at Cankdeska Cikana Community College, Dickinson State University, Mayville State University, Minot State University, Turtle Mountain Community College and Valley City State University. "This marks a major accomplishment for North Dakota," said interim vice president for health affairs and interim dean Joshua Wynne of the UND medical school. "It will advance the level of scientific inquiry throughout the state and encourage students to pursue meaningful and productive careers in the biomedical sciences." Don Sens, INBRE principal investigator and a professor in the Department of Pathology at the UND medical school, said the program provides a broad range of benefits in biomedical research and science education encompassing research universities, baccalaureate institutions and tribal colleges across North Dakota. "North Dakota INBRE's goals complement Senator Byron Dorgan's Red River Valley Research Corridor initiative," he said. "It improves the collaborative research environment between UND and NDSU and extends this network to include other colleges and universities across the state. It also compliments workforce training in the biosciences." The Institutional Development Awards (IDeA) program under the NIH National Center for Research Resources (NCRR) assists states such as North Dakota that have historically received relatively little research funding from the NIH. The objective is to develop an infrastructure that supports biomedical research, creates opportunities for students to pursue careers in biomedical research and assists researchers in becoming more competitive for NIH funding. North Dakota’s INBRE emphasizes capacity building at undergraduate institutions within the state. The goal is to improve North Dakota's research competitiveness by increasing the number of students who continue their education at a research university - such as UND or NDSU - where they can receive advanced training in biomedical research fields. To do this, INBRE funds research projects at the four-year schools and support their faculty through mentors and facilities at UND and NDSU. -- Wendy Opsahl, Communications Director, Center for Rural Health, wopsahl@medicine.nodak.edu, 777-0871