Gilbert Receives NIH grant

Michigan Technological University has received $164,521 in federal economic stimulus monies to conduct medical research.

U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin announced today that work by Ryan Gilbert, an assistant professor of biomedical engineering, is being supported by American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding through the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The grant is the first increment of a potential two-year award totaling $388,708.

Gilbert is developing a biomaterial that is liquid at room temperature and congeals into a gel when implanted into the body. This hydrogel could be infused with therapeutic agents and injected at the site of a spinal cord injury to reduce inflammation and promote healing.

The University of Michigan-Ann Arbor also received funding for medical research through the NIH stimulus package, a total of $1.5 million.

"This recovery funding will go a long way towards promoting important research projects right here in Michigan, which are committed to curing chronic diseases that affect millions of Americans," said Stabenow. "These research projects are leading the way to greatly improve the quality of life and treatment options for the families affected by these diseases and creating good-paying jobs in the process."

"This federal economic recovery funding will help the University of Michigan and Michigan Technological University do important research and improve the way we understand, diagnose and treat diseases," said Levin. "I am hopeful that this funding will create and preserve jobs in the short-term and help prevent and treat disease for generations to come."

The National Institutes of Health, a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting medical research. Helping to lead the way toward important medical discoveries that improve people's health and save lives, NIH scientists investigate ways to prevent disease as well as the causes, treatments, and even cures for common and rare diseases.

Michigan Technological University is a leading public research university, conducting research, developing new technologies and preparing students to create the future for a prosperous and sustainable world. Michigan Tech offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in engineering, forestry and environmental sciences, computing, technology, business and economics, natural and physical sciences, arts, humanities and social sciences.

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigan’s flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.