A University of Nebraska Medical Center researcher, Angie Rizzino, Ph.D., is one of 22 scientists from around the country to receive a one-year grant supplement from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) to study induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS).
Dr. Rizzino, professor in the Eppley Institute, received approximately $115,000 from NIGMS for his portion of the project. NIGMS is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
NIGMS is using $5.4 million of Recovery Act funds to accelerate basic studies of iPS cells. These iPS cells are reprogrammed from skin or other easily obtained adult cells and appear to be similar to stem cells derived from embryos.
In theory, iPS cells could generate any type of cell and be used to treat diseases. But to realize this potential, scientists need a much better understanding of iPS cells’ fundamental properties and how to efficiently derive cells that are safe for therapeutic uses.
To speed iPS research, NIGMS awarded one-year grant supplements to 22 scientists at 16 institutions in 12 states and the District of Columbia. The investigators already have strong records of accomplishment in a range of research areas and will study iPS cells in varied biological systems.
“Stem cell biology is poised for rapid advances, and we expect our Recovery Act investment to have a catalytic effect,” said NIGMS Director Jeremy M. Berg, Ph.D. “The new awards will contribute to the field’s progress by enhancing the utility of iPS cells as tools for research, for testing the effects of drugs on human tissues and ultimately for patient-specific treatments.”
The NIGMS funding will supplement Dr. Rizzino’s existing four-year NIH grant for approximately $1 million. The goal of the work supported by this additional funding is to understand how somatic cells, which are cells forming the body of organisms, are reprogrammed back to a pluripotent state.
“We are trying to determine how this reprogramming works,” Dr. Rizzino said. “It’s a vital question that could unlock major scientific breakthroughs if we can come up with the answer.”
Of the 22 scientists selected for the NIGMS grant supplements, Dr. Rizzino was the only Nebraska researcher. He was one of only three Midwestern investigators to receive the funding, as the majority came from either the East or West Coast.
Dr. Rizzino, who has been at the Eppley Institute since 1983, was one of three UNMC researchers who also received a Stem Cell Research Act grant from the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services earlier this year.
As the state’s only academic health science center, UNMC is on the leading edge of health care. Breakthroughs are possible because hard-working researchers, educators and clinicians are resolved to work together to fuel discovery. In 2009, UNMC’s extramural research support topped $100 million for the first time, resulting in the creation of 3,600 jobs in Nebraska. UNMC’s academic excellence is shown through its award-winning programs, and its educational programs are responsible for training more health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other institution. Through its commitment to education, research, patient care and outreach, UNMC and its hospital partner, The Nebraska Medical Center, have established themselves as one of the country’s leading health care centers. UNMC’s physician practice group, UNMC Physicians, includes 550 physicians in 50 specialties and subspecialties who practice primarily in The Nebraska Medical Center. For more information, go to UNMC’s Web site at www.unmc.edu.