OUR TWITTER FOLLOWERS WERE THE FIRST TO LEARN ABOUT THIS STORY.  IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN THEM - LOG ON TO www.KDBC4.com.

FROM A NEWS RELEASE SENT TO THE KDBC 4 NEWSROOM:

The University of Texas at El Paso is pleased to announce that the UTEP Border Biomedical Research Center (BBRC) has been awarded a five-year, $12.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The funding was made possible through the Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) program, administered by the National Center for Research Resources at the NIH.

Established in 1992 with support from the RCMI, the Border Biomedical Research Center addresses health issues relevant to the bicultural population of the Paso Del Norte region. Research focuses include infectious diseases, neurological and metabolic disorders, and toxicology.

"We are delighted that the National Institutes of Health, through its Research Centers in Minority Institutions program, has allocated $12.4 million to support research on health issues critical to our community, including cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS and environmental pollutants," said UTEP President Diana Natalicio. "The award reflects the NIH's confidence in UTEP's biomedical research agenda, and this continued support for the BBRC will accelerate our progress toward becoming a Tier One university."

"The BBRC grant represents a resounding recognition of the current bioscience research and education provided by our faculty for our students, and it is a strong investment in future research and potential discoveries for diseases that predominantly affect our region's population," said Anny Morrobel-Sosa, Ph.D., dean of the College of Science.

BBRC faculty research teams work in UTEP's new Bioscience Research Building, which held its grand opening celebration on Sept. 3.

The award will sustain the center's state-of-the-art laboratories and also will be used to hire new faculty and post-doctoral researchers, said BBRC Director Robert Kirken, Ph.D., professor and chair of UTEP's Department of Biological Sciences.

"The funding also creates fantastic research opportunities for our students," Kirken said. "More dollars are available to provide student stipends, support research projects and enable our students to travel to scientific conferences that broaden their horizons."

Increasing the BBRC's research capacity also creates economic benefits for the community, Kirken added.

"It prepares our students to enter the workforce as highly skilled professionals, making them a major asset in this region's ability to recruit companies in biotechnology and related fields. These are the companies that will offer good salaries and enhance the quality of life in our community," Kirken said.

On the Web: research.utep.edu/bbrc