DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, the Boettcher Foundation Board of Trustees released the names of the eight early-career scientists selected for the fourth class of Boettcher Investigators in the Webb-Waring Biomedical Research Program. The announcement is made by April Giles, President and CEO of the Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA), who said "Our association commends Boettcher Foundation for its ongoing commitment to this stellar program that assists early-career investigators in our state to continue their important research."
Launched in 2010, the Webb-Waring Biomedical Biomedical Research program fills an unmet need in the state by assisting early-career investigators engaged in biomedical sciences to advance their research. Further, the program honors the tradition of Colorado's Webb and Waring families by investing in science that has the possibility of making significant contributions to human health. Boettcher Foundation is a Titanium Sponsor of the CBSA.
Timothy W. Schultz, President and Executive Director of the Boettcher Foundation, said "Through this program, the Boettcher Foundation has been able to bring resources to an area where funds are currently lacking and where federal and private research programs provide limited support. Early-career investigators quite frequently have a difficult time securing a first opportunity at an independent research effort that will move them out of the laboratory of their mentors and onto their own new and exciting areas of discovery."
The 2013 (fourth) Class of Boettcher Investigators in the Webb-Waring Biomedical Research Program includes:
● Dr. Amrut V. Ambardekar, M.D., University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Assistant Professor of Medicine—Cardiology, Myocardial Recovery After Ventricular Assist Device Implantation
● Dr. Joseph A. Brzezinski, Ph.D., University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, Mechanisms of Retinal Development and Disease
● Dr. Soyeon Park, Ph.D., University of Colorado Boulder, Assistant Professor of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology, Molecular Mechanisms of Proteasome Biogenesis
● Dr. Abigail L. Person, Ph.D., University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Assistant Professor of Physiology & Biophysics, Corollary Discharge Pathways Underlying Schizophrenia Symptoms
● Dr. Michael Strong, Ph.D., National Jewish Health, Assistant Professor of Genes, Environment, and Health, Genomics of Respiratory Disease Associated Pathogens
● Dr. Lucas Argueso, Ph.D., Colorado State University, Assistant Professor of Radiation and Cancer Biology, Gene Copy Number Variation
● Dr. Brad Borlee, Ph.D., Colorado State University, Assistant Professor of Bacteriology, Molecular Regulation of Bacterial Pathogenesis
● Dr. Melissa Krebs, Ph.D., Colorado School of Mines, Assistant Professor of Chemical & Biological Engineering, Controlled Delivery of Therapeutics from Biopolymer Systems
With the addition of the 2013 Class, there are now 22 Boettcher Investigators conducting research in the following Colorado institutions: University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado State University, National Jewish Health and Colorado School of Mines. All grant awards are $225,000.
Early-Career Investigators (ECI’s) are faculty members who are four years or less from their first academic appointment at a research institution. The grants awarded by the Webb-Waring Biomedical Research Program support the work of the promising ECIs in Colorado. Eligible investigators apply through a competitive process within their respective institutions.
The Boettcher Foundation announced the creation of the program in 2008, as the result of an innovative agreement between the Boettcher Foundation, the Webb-Waring Foundation for Biomedical Research and the University of Colorado. Through the program, Boettcher Foundation now invests more than $1.5 million each year into efforts to increase Colorado's competitiveness in biomedical science.
"We've made every effort to ensure that the legacies of the Webb and Waring families live on in the discovery of new knowledge to improve human health and in the advancement of young scientists," Schultz explained.
“The Boettcher Foundation wanted the Webb-Waring Biomedical Research Program to invest where the impact would be the most substantial. To fund excellence in people, to partner with the state’s research institutions and to further the Webb and Waring families' long tradition of commitment to science and human health," Schultz concluded.
About the Boettcher Foundation's Webb-Waring Biomedical Research Program
The Webb-Waring Institute was founded in 1924 as the Colorado Foundation for Research in Tuberculosis. For over 80 years, the organization has contributed to the advancement of biomedical research by engaging in basic and clinical research and training research scientists. In 2008, the Boettcher Foundation was entrusted with the stewardship of the Webb-Waring Foundation's assets. Through an innovative agreement among the Boettcher Foundation, the Webb-Waring Foundation and the University of Colorado, a new funding area was established at the Boettcher Foundation which supports the work of early-career investigators in the biomedical field.
About the Boettcher Foundation
For 75 years the Boettcher Foundation has served the people of Colorado by helping to build community infrastructure through capital grant making and investing in young minds through its Scholarship Program. In virtually every community throughout the state, the Foundation has partnered with outstanding nonprofits to make a difference in people's lives.. For more information, visit: http://www.boettcherfoundation.org.
About Colorado BioScience Association
The CBSA is a not-for-profit organization providing services and support for Colorado's bioscience industry. With more than 350 members, CBSA actively works to promote the growth of the industry by advocating for a better business environment, growing the state's biotech workforce, fighting for policies that support a strong bioscience industry in the state, and speaking with a single voice on behalf of the industry. For more information, visit http://www.cobioscience.com.
CBSA also is found on these social media sites:
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/COBioscience
LinkedIn Group: http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=98468&trk=anet_ug_grppro
Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/ColoradoBioScienceAssociation
News Feed: http://coloradobio.blogspot.com
YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/COBioscience
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/COBioscience
Tumblr: http://cobioscience.tumblr.com
